– How a Boardroom Coup, CBN Crackdown Reduced the Business Tsar cum Powerbroker Into a Socio-economic Pariah
Once the face of dominance in Nigeria’s financial sector, Oba Otudeko’s dramatic fall from grace is a cautionary tale of power undone by hubris. The former Chairman of FBN Holdings Plc now stands on the brink of ruin, following a decisive boardroom coup that ousted him from the helm of the banking giant. This saga not only marks the downfall of one of Nigeria’s most prominent businessmen but also raises concerns about the governance and ethical standards of the nation’s financial sector.
In the twilight of a once-illustrious reign, where power fades like the last light of day, Oba Otudeko, the beleaguered former chairman of FBN Holdings, the parent company of First Bank of Nigeria Plc, stands at the crossroads of destiny. His empire, once a towering citadel in Nigeria’s financial world, now teeters on the edge, threatened not by external forces, but by ghosts of his own making.
For a man who had Nigeria’s premier banking institution in his grip, shaping it as his, tossing it around like a yo-yo, and making it do its bidding like an over-paid escort, Otudeko is now ensnared in a desperate battle for survival; not against competitors, but against time, fate, and the inexorable justice of Nigeria’s highest courts. The business tsar who evolved into a quintessential banking Svengali has since fallen flat on his face and is now pitifully unable to rise or muster the resilience imbued in most successful entrepreneurs.
The fairytale flourish that resonated at the mention of his name has given way to a dirge and concatenation of woes for how it all came full circle for one of Nigeria’s most formidable businessmen. After serving as chairman of the FBN for 12years, Otudeko was appointed pioneer chairman when the bank adopted a holding company structure. Alas, his reign was marred by high non-performing loans, bad credit decisions, and poor corporate governance among other wrongdoings. Informed sources revealed that under Otudeko, FBN lost over N2trillion while he used his office to corner billions of naira in what have become non-performing loans.
And it was just a matter of time before the former CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, sacked him alongside the bank’sboard. According to Emefiele, “This is a bank where depositors’ fund is almost 10 times shareholders’ fund, our interest is to protect depositors and minority shareholders who have no voice in this business. We will not sit idle and allow this to continue.
“First Bank of Nigeria is one of Nigeria’s systemically important banks, given its historical significance, balance sheet size, large customer base, and high level of interconnectedness with other financial service providers. CBN reassures First Bank of Nigeria depositors, creditors, and other stakeholders of the bank of its commitment to ensure the stability of the financial system.”
Interestingly, however, Otudeko’s troubles began in April 2021, when a power struggle within FBN Holdings erupted into a full-blown crisis. In an audacious move, Otudeko and then-First Bank of Nigeria Chairperson, Ibukun Awosika, attempted to remove the bank’s Managing Director, Adesola Adeduntan, despite a clear directive from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to retain him. The defiance triggered an unprecedented intervention by the CBN, which promptly removed Otudeko from his position at the helm of FBN Holdings. This bold action sent shockwaves through the financial sector, signaling the beginning of a swift and steep decline for the once-formidable titan.
Following his ouster, Otudeko made several attempts to stage a comeback, using what some described as “surreptitious” means to reclaim his lost power. However, FBN Holdings was prepared to thwart his every move.
Between then and now, Otudeko has made many subterranean moves to sneak back into the FBN as if no one was looking. The latest in this regard was the suit filed by Barbican Capital Ltd, an investment firm where two of his children – Foluke Oyeleye and Obafemi Adedamola Otudeko (Jr.) – have controlling interests, claiming alteration of its alleged over five million units of shares in the bank. Barbican Capital Limited, an affiliate company of Honeywell Group Limited owned by Otudeko, claimed that over the years and at different times, it cumulatively acquired about 5,386,397,202 shares, representing 15.1 percent of FBNH’s overall share listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE.
However, the CBN, in a January 2024 letter, countered this, stating that due to insufficient documents, it was only able to verify 3,110,400.619 share units out of Barbican Capital Ltd’s then 4,770,269,843 billion shareholding. This was captured in the FBN’s Unaudited Financial Statement for the year ended 2023 in December 2023. Barbican Capital ignored several requests to provide relevant documents substantiating its claim.
In its deposition to the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, the CBN stated that in the exercise of its powers as the regulatory and supervisory authority, demanded from Barbican Capital Ltd and its Honeywell Group Ltd evidence of the purchase of shares being claimed to verify the shares and satisfy itself that the shares were purchased or that they belonged to them.
However, the CBN stated, “Rather than regularise its status with the CBN by providing relevant documents to the CBN necessary for the verification of its unverified shareholding, the plaintiff has instituted this suit in a bid to activate machinery of justice to compel the defendant to defy its regulator, due process, regulatory laws, and policies by mandating it to recognise all of the plaintiff’s purported shareholding obtained without CBN’s approval which as at the time of filing the suit stood to the tune of about 5,397,409,262 billion units.”
Before losing face at the FBN, Ecobank had accused Otudeko’s companies of a N13.5 billion debt and that Otudeko was “diverting his assets and that of the Honeywell Group of companies through the said Barbican Capital Limited”, which it added is “in order to frustrate the enforcement of the judgment of the Supreme Court against him and the Honeywell companies towards recovering his/their undisputed indebtedness to our client.”
The legal tussle culminated in the Supreme Court ruling that despite Otudeko and Honeywell’s subterfuge, they owe Ecobank.
As these battles unfolded, the man who once stood as a pillar of Nigeria’s financial establishment found himself increasingly isolated and disgraced.
The turmoil within FBN Holdings did not occur in a vacuum. It took place against the backdrop of a financial industry plagued by regulatory lapses and a lack of transparency. Stakeholders in the sector have been left questioning how Otudeko, despite his growing list of controversies, managed to ascend to the prestigious position of President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Many point to his rise as indicative of the systemic dysfunction and ethical shortcomings that continue to haunt Nigeria’s financial regulatory landscape.
Yet, it is the recent events at FBN Holdings that have done the most damage to Otudeko’s reputation. The swift and decisive action taken by the CBN, and the firm resistance from FBN Holdings’ board, have not only removed Otudeko from his position of power but also prevented him from making a comeback. The collapse of his attempts to reassert control has left him in a precarious position, with his influence waning and his business empire appearing increasingly vulnerable.
Otudeko’s fall from grace has not only been melodramatic, but it also serves as a stark reminder of the fragility of power in the high-stakes world of corporate Nigeria. Once revered for his business acumen, Otudeko now finds himself embroiled in a battle for survival—one in which the odds seem increasingly stacked against him.
His decline is emblematic of a larger crisis of governance and ethics within Nigeria’s financial sector, where the lines between corporate ambition and regulatory oversight often blur, with devastating consequences for those caught in the crossfire.
The questions surrounding Otudeko’s rise to power—and his subsequent fall—reflect deeper concerns about the state of Nigeria’s financial industry. How did a man whose career has been marked by such controversy rise to lead some of the nation’s most important financial institutions?
The answers lie not just in Otudeko’s personal story but in the broader systemic issues that continue to plague Nigeria’s financial and regulatory frameworks. Without addressing these underlying problems, the nation’s financial sector may remain vulnerable to the same kinds of crises that have now ensnared one of its most prominent figures.
As Otudeko’s legacy teeters on the edge of collapse, it is clear that the man who once towered over Nigeria’s business landscape now faces an uncertain future. His once-glorious empire is crumbling, and with it, the myth of invincibility that once surrounded him.
