By: ThinkBusiness Africa
Nigerian leading commercial bank, First Bank of Nigeria (FirstBank) has officially crossed the N500 billion recapitalization threshold, meeting the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) stringent new requirements months ahead of the March 2026 deadline.
This is according to regulatory filings sent to the Nigerian stock exchange market (NGX). The achievement marks a dramatic turnaround for the bank, which just a year prior had been grappling with internal boardroom tensions that some analysts feared would stall its capital-raising efforts.
The CBN’s recapitalization directive, issued in March 2024, gave banks two years to significantly bolster their capital bases to ensure the industry could support Nigeria’s ambition of becoming a $1 trillion economy.
For banks with international licenses like FirstBank, the target was set at a staggering N500 billion in paid-up capital and share premium.
“This milestone was achieved following the completion of a series of strategic capital initiatives, including a Rights Issue, a Private Placement, and the injection of proceeds from the divestment of the Group’s merchant banking subsidiary.” FBN said.
The bank successfully executed a N150 billion rights issue in 2024, which laid the foundation for its capital buffer. To close the remaining gap, the bank initiated a massive N350 billion private placement and capital injection exercise throughout 2025.
The commercial bank leveraged record-breaking profits from the 2024 financial year to stabilize its operations.
FirstBank now joins Access Bank, Zenith Bank, GTCO (GTBank), as early compilers in the Tier-1 category. Meanwhile, United Bank for Africa (UBA) is still the only tier-1 bank yet to meet the recapitalization target.
For the average Nigerian depositor, FirstBank’s successful recapitalization means increased security. A higher capital base acts as a “shock absorber” against economic volatility.
For the broader economy, it means FirstBank now has the “firepower” to fund massive infrastructure projects, oil and gas ventures, and large-scale manufacturing that were previously beyond the capacity of local lenders.
With the deadline of March 31, 2026, still on the horizon for smaller institutions, FirstBank’s early success positions it as a potential “predator” in the coming wave of banking sector mergers and acquisitions.
