Elumelu overtakes Otedola, acquires more Transcorp shares

Tony Elumelu spent over N23 billion to tighten his control in Transnational Corporation (Transcorp) after Femi Otedola displaced him as the single largest majority investor in the firm.

It would be recalled that Otedola, last week bought 2.24 billion shares in Transcorp, a move that handed him a 5.52 per cent stake in Transcorp.

The share acquisition by Otedola saw him overtake Elumelu, who owned a 2.06 per cent stake at the time and also serves as chairman at Transcorp.

In response, Elumelu acquired 9.69 billion shares through his investment company, HH Capital Limited, which previously held 293.98 million shares.

This was disclosed on Thursday in a corporate document shared with shareholders and the capital market authority, Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

The acquisition through HH Capital Limited increased his total shares in Transcorp to 10.26 billion, from 840.63 million.

As a result, Elumelu now has a controlling stake of 25.2 per cent in Transcorp, above his previous 2.06 per cent stake. This also increased his stake above the 5.52 per cent held by Otedola.

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Elumelu’s total investment value in Transcorp is now N30.28 billion as of Wednesday, while that of Otedola is N6.60 billion.

In the corporate document, Transcorp said: “With this new acquisition, HH Capital Limited now holds a total of 9,991,173,177 units, representing 25.58 per cent of the Company’s total shares.

“As noted in our previous communication, the Company welcomes the continued expression of confidence in its leadership and management by the investing public, as we continue our unwavering commitment to superior stakeholders’ returns, anchored in our ideology of Africapitalism.

“Rest assured, we are committed to remaining resolute in executing our Group’s strategy of making strategic investments in key sectors within the Nigerian economy, transforming Africa, and contributing positively towards building prosperity for all.”

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According to the details of the acquisition as of April 25, 2023, HH Capital Limited acquired 9,697,189,984 units of shares, bringing their total holdings in Transcorp to 9,991,173,177 units, representing 25.58 per cent of the Company’s total shares.

Recall that trade volumes of about 5 billion units exchanged hands in yet another off-market trade at the same price of N2.45 per share, over 10 billion units of the shares have traded since Femi Otedola announced the acquisition.

It is however unclear if UBA Nominees, which was the erstwhile majority shareholder of Transcorp Plc still retains its shareholding or if part of it was crossed to HH Capital Ltd.

Meanwhile, Transcorp Plc also announced Femi Otedola purchased a further 228,384,959 shares of the company adding to the 5.05% he already owns.