Sterling Holdco Executives buy #341.6m in company shares

Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc has disclosed that three of its top executives have collectively acquired 46.24 million units of the company’s shares in transactions worth approximately ₦341.63 million. The insider purchases, filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited this week, come just weeks before the group begins a public offer aimed at strengthening its capital base in line with new Central Bank of Nigeria requirements.

The largest of the transactions was executed on August 1 through Seven Degrees North Limited, an investment vehicle linked to Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Yemi Odubiyi, which bought 20,816,570 shares at ₦6.80 per share, totalling about ₦141.55 million. On the same day, Sterling Bank’s Chief Operating Officer, Temitayo Adegoke, purchased 5,742,260 shares at ₦6.87 each, valued at roughly ₦39.45 million.

Separately, on August 6, Sterling Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Abubakar Suleiman, acquired 19,684,442 shares at ₦8.16 per unit in a deal worth approximately ₦160.63 million.

The share acquisitions come as Sterling HoldCo prepares to launch the public phase of its capital raising programme. According to the group’s half-year financial report, the planned offer seeks to close a ₦53 billion recapitalisation gap for Sterling Bank and position the institution for sustained growth across its diversified income streams. This public offer marks the first stage of a US$400 million capital raising plan approved by shareholders at the company’s June 30, 2025 Annual General Meeting.

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The group has previously raised about ₦100 billion through private placements and a rights issue, which fully recapitalised Alternative Bank, its non-interest banking subsidiary, and bolstered the capital position of Sterling Bank, its flagship operation. At the close of its last Monetary Policy Committee meeting, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso revealed that eight banks had already met the newly set minimum capital thresholds, with others still working towards compliance.

In March 2024, the CBN mandated that commercial banks with international authorisation increase their capital to ₦500 billion, while those with national and regional licences must meet ₦200 billion and ₦50 billion thresholds respectively. Non-interest banks are required to achieve ₦20 billion for national and ₦10 billion for regional authorisation, with all banks expected to comply by March 2026.