Posted by By Omoh Gabriel, Business Editor on
ZENITH Bank PLC's offer of three billion new ordinary shares will open for subscription on Monday, February 6. This was disclosed by the bank's Managing Director, Mr. Jim Ovia, at the completion board meeting in Lagos.
LAGOS - ZENITH Bank PLC's offer of three billion new ordinary shares will open for subscription on Monday, February 6. This was disclosed by the bank's Managing Director, Mr. Jim Ovia, at the completion board meeting in Lagos.
Mr Ovia said the new three billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo which the bank is giving to the public to buy for N16.90 kobo is the largest single of such in the history of the Nigerian long term market for funds (capital market). The bank which started as a private bank last year open its doors to the public by offering them opportunity to buy shares into the bank and become part owners.
Mr. Ovia said the bank's entry into the public ownership domain was dramatic in that the Nigerian investing public held a referendum and voted overwhelmingly for Zenith as the entry offer to became a public company (Initial Public Offer) was 554 per cent over subscribed.
Mr. Ovia said the bank initially set out to raise N10 billion but ended with N48 billion as proceeds from the entry point into the long term fund market.
Mr. Atedo Peterside, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of IBTC/Chartered Bank in his remark at the meeting that served as the signature of the offer confirmed that Zenith new shares which would be rolled out from Monday remained the largest in the history of the Nigerian long term fund market.
He said the arrangement for the new shares of Zenith to be sold to the Nigerian public was about the fastest to be concluded in such a short period of time, making Zenith a record breaking bank in the country.
Managing Directors of companies that buy and sell shares in Nigeria who spoke at the meeting called to complete all the necessary arrangements before the commencement of the sales of the bank shares (Completion Board Meeting) said they supported the first outing of the bank and would do so again because the management of the bank was transparent and very competent. They said Zenith entry into the market for long term funds had brought dynamism into the market.
The bank is projecting that in 2006 it would make a profit before tax of N11.452 billion while in 2007 and 2008 it hoped to make N16.131billion and N18.144billion respectively. The bank also plans to pay a dividend of 85 kobo per share in 2006, 85.0 kobo in 2007 and 90 kobo in 2008.