Stanbic, GTCO, First HoldCo, United Capital to raise N549bn after SEC rule

Nigeria’s leading financial groups, including Stanbic IBTC, GTCO, First HoldCo and United Capital, may be required to raise a combined N549 billion in fresh capital following a new directive by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) linking fund managers’ minimum capital to their assets under management (AuM).

In a recent circular, the SEC announced that fund managers overseeing portfolios above N100 billion must maintain minimum capital equivalent to 10 per cent of their net asset value (NAV) or AuM.

The new rule replaces the previous fixed capital requirement with a scalable model that rises in line with the size of funds managed.

An analysis of major listed asset managers shows that the policy could significantly affect Nigeria’s largest banking and non-banking financial holding companies with dominant asset management businesses.

The four biggest listed firms with substantial exposure to fund management could collectively need to raise up to N549 billion to comply with the revised requirement.

For deposit money banks, the development opens another recapitalisation pressure point, coming at a time when the industry is still grappling with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s N500 billion minimum capital requirement for banks.

The institutions most exposed are those whose asset management subsidiaries dominate the mutual funds segment of the market.

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Stanbic IBTC, the industry leader, recorded a 42 per cent year-on-year growth in assets under management to N2.7 trillion as of the first half of 2025. Under the new SEC framework, the group may be required to raise about N270 billion in additional capital to meet the 10 per cent threshold.

First HoldCo, through its First Asset Management subsidiary, ranks second in the industry with N1.12 trillion in AuM as of the first half of 2025 and a market share of about 14 per cent in collective investment schemes.

The holding company could now face a capital raise of roughly N112 billion to comply with the regulation.

United Capital, a listed non-bank financial services group, saw its managed funds grow by 27 per cent year-to-date to N1.07 trillion in September 2025, up from N846.6 billion in December 2024.

This growth places its potential additional capital requirement at close to N100 billion.

Guaranty Trust Holding Company’s asset management arm reported assets under management of N679.94 billion as of the first half of 2025.

Based on the SEC’s new rule, GTCO may need to inject about N67 billion in fresh capital into its asset management business.

The Star