The deal that increased the FCMB Group’s stake in AIICO Pensions Managers Limited to 60% has now been completed, according to AIICO Pensions, as regulator approvals are now in place.
The merger of 33.9 percent of the shares held by AIICO Insurance (the former parent company) and 26.1 percent of those held by other stockholders means that “AIICO Pensions ceases to be a subsidiary of AIICO Insurance and has now become an indirect subsidiary of FCMB Group Plc,” the pension manager stated in a note to the Nigerian Exchange Limited.
In an effort to expand its pension unit, Lagos-based FCMB Group approached AIICO’s underwriter for 70% ownership in the company, but the latter only agreed to part with a small portion.
According to the Nigerian Pension Commission, which approved the merger, a name change combining AIICO Pensions and FCMB Pensions into a single operation is likely to be announced soon.
In a policy document issued in September 2015, the pension office stated that “no individual, group of individuals, or company shall have direct or indirect ownership/shareholding of 5% or more in more than one licensed Pension Fund Operator.”
Source: PremiumTimes
