Femi Otedola has reportedly sold his 2.47 billion shares in Transnational Corporation (Transcorp) to Tony Elumelu, bringing an end to the powerplay between the billionaires.
According to multiple sources, Elumelu allegedly acquired the shares from Otedola at the cost of about N32 billion.
This indicates that Elumelu bought out Otedola at 300 per cent above Transcorp’s market value as of Thursday. This means each share was bought around N12.5 kobo, compared to Thursday’s closing price of N3.12 kobo per share.
Transcorp was yet to respond to Ripples Nigeria’s enquiry as at the time of filing this report.
TrackNews had reported last week that Otedola bought 2.45 billion shares in Transcorp as of April 19, to take up a 5.52 per cent stake in the firm. It was later announced on Thursday that he acquired an additional 228.38 million shares on April 20 to increase his stake to 6.08 per cent.
In response, Elumelu increased his stake in Transcorp from 2.06 per cent (840.63 million shares) to 25.2 per cent (9.99 billion shares), as he bought an additional 9.69 billion shares through his investment company, HH Capital Limited.
This led to projections of a powerplay between both billionaires for the control of Transcorp, where Elumelu serves as chairman.
The report of Otedola selling his shares surprised analysts watching Transcorp shares closely, considering he had publicly written to the board last week that he looks forward to working with them.
Also, Elumelu had stated in an interview this week that he’s excited Otedola has chosen to join Transcorp by investing in the power company.
