In line with the objectives to deliver a consistent customer experience and drive increased stakeholder value, FBN Holdings Plc has announced the renaming of all entities under its Merchant Banking and Asset Management group. These are FBNQuest Merchant Bank, FBNQuest Asset Management, FBNQuest Securities; FBNQuest Capital, FBNQuest Trustees and FBNQuest Funds.

The Merchant Banking and Asset Management group is set to close the year on a positive note, having successfully delivered several landmark transactions in the course of the year. In 2017, FBNQuest Merchant Bank was appointed as co-Financial Adviser to the Debt Management Office (DMO) on the inaugural FGN N100 billion Sukuk offer, and acted as a Joint Issuing House/Book Runner for the Dufil Bond programme. Despite the tight monetary conditions, the Bond Series was successfully distributed to a diversified mix of investors which included Pension Fund Administrators, Insurance Companies, Asset Managers, Deposit Money Banks and a frontier-market fund managers.

FBNQuest Merchant Bank also acted as Joint Financial Advisers to the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON), advising on the divestment of its 100% stake in Keystone Bank; as Joint Issuing House/Arranger on the Municipality Waste Management Contractors Limited 18% Series 1 Fixed Rate Medium Term Notes Programme, advising on structuring the Notes and documentation to establish the programme; and as Joint Local Book Runner on Nigeria’s first ever SEC-registered debt instrument, first ever diaspora bond offering, and first Saharan African offering in SEC Registered format for the Federal Republic of Nigeria – the US$300M 5.625% Inaugural US SEC-Registered Diaspora Bond due in 2022.

FBNQuest Asset Management won the ‘Best Asset Manager in Nigeria’ award in the 2017 Euromoney Private Banking and Wealth Management Survey and the EMEAFinance African Banking Awards, and also topped the chart in the BusinessDay Research and Intelligence Unit (BRIU) transparency index by scoring 73 points out of a possible 100 points. The BRIU report entitled the ‘Nigerian Mutual Fund Managers Transparency Report’ evaluated and ranked fund managers registered with the SEC. FBNQuest Asset Management currently manages the FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund which has achieved a return of 45.2% from inception to the end of November 2017, outperforming the NSE ASI’s (Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index) return of 41.2 in the same period. The other Funds managed by the company have continued to deliver competitive returns to investors.

FBNQuest Securities (a member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange) was also recognized as ‘Best Broker in Nigeria’ at the 2017 EMEA Finance African Banking Awards. The firm is currently ranked as one of the top 10 brokers on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) YTD ranking, and the number one Market Maker in Nigeria.

FBNQuest Trustees remains a leading private, corporate and public trust services provider, championing public education on estate planning via its innovative Legacy Series program. Going into its 5th season, the Legacy Series addresses inheritance planning, education trusts, business succession planning, Islamic inheritance planning and other insightful topics. The firm was recognised for its commitment and contributions in this sphere, and received the Metropolitan Skills Award for Excellence in Islamic Finance.

In line with aspirations to develop a broad platform that will provide diversification and return-enhancing products through various alternative asset classes, FBNQuest Funds Limited has made a commitment to a VC Technology focused fund launched by TLcom Capital, TIDE Africa Fund. The TIDE Africa Fund is the first international venture capital fund focused exclusively on technology-enabled solutions and innovation serving Sub Saharan Africa, and seeks to provide capital and business-building support to world class African entrepreneurs developing technology-driven solutions to solve the continent’s biggest problems.

With several more achievements recorded in the year and over 14 awards received by the Merchant Banking and Asset Management group in 2017, such as Africa Deal of the Year from The Banker Awards, Best Project Finance Adviser from EMEAFinance Project Finance Awards, Most Innovative Investment Firm in Nigeria from BusinessDay, and Best Investment Bank in Nigeria from Global Finance and EMEAFinance Achievement Awards; the FBNQuest companies continue to demonstrate a breadth of capabilities to uniquely support a broad range of clients, and remain committed to delivering solutions that redefine tomorrow.