First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Group Plc has opened a N160 billion public offer to bolster its capital base and enable its banking subsidiary, First City Monument Bank Limited, to retain its international banking licence under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) new recapitalisation policy.
The offer, which consists of 16 billion ordinary shares priced at N10 each, will run until November 6, 2025. The proceeds will be channelled toward meeting the CBN’s new N500 billion minimum capital requirement for international banks, as part of the regulator’s ongoing sector-wide recapitalisation drive.
This new raise marks the second phase of FCMB’s three-stage capital plan and follows its N147.5 billion share sale in 2024-the bank’s first equity offering in 16 years. That 2024 exercise was oversubscribed by 33 per cent, attracting 42,800 investors, 92 per cent of whom participated digitally. Market analysts expect similar investor enthusiasm for the 2025 offer, given FCMB’s strong performance and improving investor sentiment in the banking sector.
FCMB Group has recorded impressive growth over the past three years. Between 2022 and 2025, group profit before tax (PBT) rose at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 72 per cent, reflecting the group’s strengthened operational efficiency and diversified income streams.
Non-bank subsidiaries also delivered remarkable results, with a 61 per cent PBT CAGR. The standout performers include Credit Direct Finance Company Limited, Nigeria’s largest non-bank lender, and FCMB Capital Markets Limited, which ranked top of the FMDQ fixed income league table for bond listings and commercial paper issuances in the first half of 2025.
Digital transformation has been another major growth catalyst. FCMB’s digital revenues have grown by over 58 per cent annually since 2022, now accounting for 13.9 per cent of the group’s total gross earnings. As of June 2025, digital lending represented 9% of the total loan portfolio, underlining the bank’s ongoing transition toward technology-driven banking services.
Analysts describe FCMB’s stock as offering ‘a rare blend of deep value and high growth,’ noting its estimated 2025 price-to-book ratio of less than 0.6x-an attractive valuation compared to peers in the Nigerian banking sector.
Upon completion of the current share sale, FCMB Group plans to finalise the sale of minority stakes in two of its non-bank subsidiaries. The proceeds from these divestments will also be injected into the banking arm, further strengthening its qualifying core capital.
This combined effort is expected to lift FCMB’s total capital above the ?500 billion threshold required to maintain its international banking licence, effectively closing the group’s recapitalisation programme ahead of the CBN’s March 2026.