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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has confirmed its initiation of an investigation into the ongoing dispute within First Bank of Nigeria Holdings Plc.
Minority investors staged a protest at the bank’s headquarters, urging regulatory intervention and demanding the prompt convening of the company’s 11th Annual General Meeting.
Responding to inquiries about the situation, an insider from the commission revealed in a text message on Thursday that SEC was actively investigating the matter.
The source stated, “Regarding your enquiry, please be informed that there is an ongoing investigation on the matter and the SEC does not want to jeopardise the process.”
The bank had announced its intention to seek shareholders’ approval to raise N150 billion in fresh capital through a Rights Issue, as well as to elect new directors, including prominent businessman Femi Otedola and Samson Ariyibi.
Addressing the concerns of the minority shareholders during their protest, Mukhtar Mukhtar, Chairman of the Trusted Shareholders’ Association, emphasized the need for regulatory bodies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigerian Stock Exchange, and SEC to intervene in the ongoing dispute.
Mukhtar commented, “The regulators – Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigerian Stock Exchange and Securities and Exchange Commission, should wade into this problem. They know that AGMs are statutory.”
He further stressed the importance of First Bank of Nigeria’s role in the nation’s economy and urged regulators not to remain silent in the face of such a critical situation.
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