Fidelity Bank completes First Phase of capital raise with oversubscribed public offer, rights issue

Fidelity Bank Plc, has successfully concluded the first tranche of its equity capital raise through its Public Offer and Rights Issue (the Combined Offer), following the completion of the capital verification exercise conducted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the approval of the Basis of Allotment by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A total of 108,046 applications for 23,791,687,463 Ordinary Shares, amounting to N231,968,952,764.25, were received under the Public Offer. Of these, 107,588 applications for 23,768,724,000 Ordinary Shares totaling N231,745,059,000.00 were deemed valid based on the terms of the Offer and the CBN’s verification process. However, 458 applications representing 22,765,143 Ordinary Shares, valued at N221,960,144.25, were rejected as invalid, along with 548 applications containing odd lots amounting to 198,320 Ordinary Shares (N1,933,620.00).

The Public Offer saw an oversubscription rate of 237%, with a 150% allotment.

Regarding the Rights Issue, 7,559 applications for 4,430,290,237 Ordinary Shares amounting to N40,980,184,692.25 were received. However, 656 applications for 23,037,442 Ordinary Shares totaling N213,096,338.50 were deemed invalid under the Rights Issue’s terms. The Rights Issue recorded a 137.73% subscription rate and a 100% allotment.

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“We are delighted to announce the successful completion of the first phase of our capital raising initiatives through a Public Offer and Rights Issue. The positive result recorded in our Combined Offer is a testament to the strength of the Fidelity Bank franchise in the capital market. It is both gratifying and humbling to note this level of investor confidence in our Bank.

“We extend sincere gratitude to our investors for their continued confidence in the Bank, as evidenced by the 237.92% and 137.73% oversubscription of our Public Offer and Rights Issue, respectively. As we go into the next phase of our capital raising drive, we reaffirm our commitment to providing cutting-edge financial solutions to our customers and sustainable returns to our stakeholders,” commented Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, OON, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank Plc.

The funds raised in this initial phase will be channeled toward local and international business expansion, upgrading technological infrastructure, and enhancing customer service initiatives.

With this successful capital raise, the Board of Directors recently secured shareholder approval to commence the second phase and remains confident of meeting the new regulatory capital requirement for banks with international authorization ahead of the CBN’s deadline of March 31, 2026.

Following the CBN’s publication of revised minimum capital requirements for banks in March 2024, Fidelity Bank’s Combined Offer in June 2024 made it the first financial institution to undertake a public offer on the Nigerian Exchange Group.

The Bank’s shares, initially priced at N9.75 per share for the Public Offer and N9.25 per share for the Rights Issue in June 2024, surged to a high of N21.15 on February 7, 2025—a growth rate of over 116%, the highest in the banking industry.

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Ranked among Nigeria’s top financial institutions, Fidelity Bank Plc is a full-fledged Commercial Deposit Money Bank serving over 8.5 million customers through digital banking channels, 251 business offices across Nigeria, and its United Kingdom subsidiary, FidBank UK Limited.