By Olatunde Dodondawa
The relisting signifies another significant development in the ongoing transition, as unanimously approved by its shareholders.
Under the Scheme of Arrangement, Sterling Bank’s issued and paid-up share capital, valued at 28.8 billion outstanding shares, will be passed to the holding company in exchange for the allotment of the same units to shareholders.
This move, as ratified by the Nigerian Exchange, follows an approval-in-principle for Sterling to convert to a non-operating financial holding company as granted by the Central Bank of Nigeria and is expected to enable Sterling to continue to diversify its
investment portfolio and expand its presence in the financial markets.
The relisting also represents a strategic move for Sterling as it continues to build momentum and position itself for long-term success. Upon the completion of the transition, the Sterling Financial Holdings Company will commence operations with two banking subsidiaries; Sterling Bank, which will operate as a conventional commercial bank; and The Alternative Bank Limited, which will operate as a non-interest bank.
Commenting on the development, Sterling Bank Chair, Asue Ighodalo stated: “We are excited to embark on this journey as we seek to continue to provide the best services and product offerings to our customers while continuing to create and deliver even more sustainable value for our shareholders.”
In recent times, Sterling has become renowned for its HEART of Sterling strategy, which focuses major investments in the Health, Education, Agriculture, Renewable Energy, and Transportation sectors of the economy, its progressive and youth-focused brand, which is a leading light in the financial services category, it’s award-winning talent recruitment and retention services as evidenced by the Best Place To Work In Nigeria’s record of victories, as well its recent successes in developing and shipping innovative products such as Specta, OneBank, i-Invest, Omni X, and Imperium in fulfillment of the needs of the Nigerian market.