LAGOS — Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) has announced plans to raise approximately $100 million through a fully marketed equity offering as it prepares to transition from its Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) structure to a full listing of its ordinary shares on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).

The move, disclosed in a corporate filing with the Nigerian Exchange on Thursday, forms part of the group’s broader strategy to meet regulatory capital requirements and enhance international investor participation.

According to the statement, the offering commenced on July 2 and will close on July 3, 2025, with the listing of GTCO’s ordinary shares on the LSE’s Main Market scheduled for 8:00 a.m. on July 9, 2025. The shares will trade under the ticker symbol “GTHC”, which will later revert to “GTCO” upon the cancellation of the GDRs by July 31, 2025.

GTCO has submitted an application to delist its GDRs from both the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Official List and the London Stock Exchange, replacing them with a direct listing of its ordinary shares, thereby streamlining its international capital market presence.

Supporting Recapitalisation

The equity raise is aimed at supporting the recapitalisation of GTCO’s flagship banking subsidiary, GTBank Nigeria, in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) new capital requirement of ₦500 billion for international commercial banks. The CBN has set a March 2026 deadline for compliance.

“The net proceeds of this offering will be used primarily for the further recapitalisation of GTBank Nigeria and are intended to be deployed in accordance with GTCO’s growth strategy,” the company stated.

GTCO had earlier raised ₦209 billion in July 2024, marking the first tranche of its capital raise programme.

Strategic Milestone

GTCO’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Segun Agbaje, described the listing and capital raise as a defining moment in the group’s evolution.

“This offering and transition to a full listing on the Official List of the FCA and to trading of the company’s shares on the London Stock Exchange’s main market for listed securities represents a pivotal moment in GTCO’s growth story, reinforcing our position as a forward-thinking African financial services institution,” Agbaje said.

“By enhancing our global visibility and access to capital, we are not just advancing our own ambitions but also unlocking transformative opportunities across the markets and customer segments we serve,” he added.

Strong Financial Performance

GTCO also reported profit after tax of ₦258 billion in the first quarter of 2025, representing a 61% year-on-year growth, excluding fair value gains. The performance was attributed to robust core earnings. The group also improved its non-performing loan (NPL) ratio to 4.5%, down from 5.2% at the end of 2024.

As GTCO moves to deepen its global market footprint, its strategic pivot highlights a broader trend among Nigerian banks seeking to strengthen their capital base and competitiveness through international market engagement.