By Esther Agbo

Consolidated Hallmark Holdings (CHH) Plc held its inaugural Annual General Meeting (AGM) today, marking a significant milestone in the company’s history.

CHH Chairman, Shuaibu Idris, In his address, highlighted the company’s impressive financial performance in the face of economic challenges.

He reported a 32 percent increase in insurance revenue, which rose from N11.9 billion in 2022 to N15.7 billion in 2023.

Total assets also saw substantial growth, jumping 44 percent from N18.2 billion in 2022 to N26.2 billion in 2023. Profit Before Tax (PBT) surged to N4.6 billion from N983 million, and total profit attributable to shareholders increased to N3.8 billion from N547 million in 2022.

Moreover, he stated the board’s commitment to shareholder returns was underscored by the announcement of a dividend of N0.05 per ordinary share, totaling N542 million.

Idris assured that qualifying shareholders who have updated their records with the Registrars would see their accounts credited by the end of the AGM.

Despite being a non-operating holding company, CHH is dedicated to maintaining control over its subsidiaries, making strategic investments, and protecting the Group’s assets.

He expressed optimism about the future, emphasising the role of technology in consolidating CHH’s position in the financial services sector.

“We remain optimistic of a more friendly operating environment in the years ahead, which we hope to take full advantage of and increase the market share of our member companies in all sectors where we are operational.

“The use of technology remains pivotal in our quest to continually consolidate our operations as one of the top players in the financial services sector and beyond,” he noted.

The Group Chief Executive Officer, CHH, Eddie Efekoha highlighted the company’s long-term growth, noting a 465 per cent increase in total assets of N4.6 billion since 2007. Profit After Tax (PAT) grew by 589 per cent, reaching N3.7 billion in 2023, driven by improved premium rates and compliance efforts in motor insurance.

Efekoha, reflecting the Group’s commitment to prompt settlements, reported that the Group paid out N5 billion in claims in 2023, up from N4.4 billion in 2022. He also noted that this represents a 2,485 per cent increase compared to the N197.2 million paid in claims in 2007.

He said, “As a Group, we remain committed to prompt claims settlement whether in Health Insurance, Micro life Assurance or in our General Business and Special Risks Insurance. Our quest to significantly grow our market would continually receive a boost with the faith of our customers in our ability and preparedness to meet their needs when claims arise.”

He further explained that raising the premium rate for Motor Insurance and rigorous compliance measures led to higher income in this business sector.

He added that increasing the third-party motor insurance rate for private cars from N5,000 to N15,000 was necessary due to inflation and the industry’s long-standing failure to adjust rates in line with economic conditions.

The AGM featured praise from shareholders, including Chairman Emeritus, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria, ISAN, Sir Sunny Nwosu, who commended the seamless transition to a holding company and urged continued growth. Another shareholder, Nona Awo, echoed these sentiments, encouraging the board to build on its achievements.

Investors in the Nigerian equities market lost N250 billion at the close of trading on Tuesday.

This followed the dip in the share value of Oando, UPL, Academy, and others on the trading floor today.

After five hours of trading at the capital market, the equity capitalisation crashed to N56.1 trillion from N56.3 trillion posted by the bourse on Monday.

The All-Share Index (ASI) decreased to 99,217.60 from 99,651.67 recorded the previous day.

The market breadth was negative as 26 stocks advanced, 23 declined, while 72 others remained unchanged in 8,511 deals.

Okomuoil, John Holt, and Conhall PLC led other gainers with 10 percent, 9.79 percent and 9.43 percent growth in share price to close at N291.50, N3.14, and N1.74 from the previous N265.00, N2.86, and N1.59 per share.

On the flip side, Oando, UPL, and Academy led other price decliners as they shed 9.75 percent, 9.09 percent, and 8.00 percent each to close at N12.50, N2.50, and N1.84 from the initial N13.85, N2.75, and N2.00 per share.

On the volume index, Transcorp led trading with 47.509 million shares valued at N581 million in 306 deals followed by GTCO which traded 37.853 million shares valued at N1.64 billion in 258 deals.

Veritaskap traded 34.950 million shares valued at N31 million in 173 deals.

On the value index, GTCO recorded the highest value for the day trading stocks worth N1.64 billion in 258 deals followed by MTNN which traded equities worth N598 million in 427 deals.

By Opeyemi Abdulsalam

Femi Otedola, a prominent billionaire businessman, has made a significant move by acquiring additional shares in FBN Holdings.

This development was made public through a corporate filing on the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) on Monday.

The acquisition adds 2.22 percent to Otedola’s existing stake in the company, solidifying his position as a major shareholder.

With this latest acquisition, Otedola’s total shareholding in FBN Holdings now stands at 11.63 percent, the highest among all shareholders.

This significant stake cements his influence and control in the company’s decision-making processes.

Overall, this development highlights Otedola’s status as a shrewd businessman and a key player in the Nigerian financial sector.

His significant stake in FBN Holdings is a clear indication of his dedication to the company’s success and his contribution to the growth of the Nigerian economy.

According to the NGX filing, Otedola spent N17.2 billion to 797,946,415 shares at 21.58k.

The latest acquisition comes just four days after the serial investor increased his stakes in the holding company to 9.41 percent after splashing a whooping N18.9 billion to buy a total of 863,180,810 shares.

With that and in addition to the latest purchase, Otedola’s shares (direct and indirect) in FBN Holdings has now leapt to 4,178,409,365 — from 2,517,282,140 shares.

This means the businessman is now the biggest shareholder in the company, displacing Barbican Capital Limited, owned by Oba Otudeko, which has 3,110,400,619 direct shares.

In January, FBN Holdings appointed Otedola as the chairman of its board of directors.

The appointment had come two years after the investor became the firm’s single largest shareholder in December 2021, when he increased his stake to 7.57 percent.

A month after the appointment, FBN Holdings named Barbican Capital Limited as its majority shareholder — making Otedola the second major shareholder at the time.

It was learnt that Otedola spent over N100 billion on FBN Holdings shares in three years.