Access Bank consistently led in gross earnings among selected Nigerian banks, reaching N4.9T in 2024, a significant jump from N2.6T in 2023

  • Access Bank led all Nigerian banks with ₦4.9T in gross earnings in 2024, nearly doubling its 2023 performance.
  • FirstHoldCo saw a sharp rise in earnings to ₦3.2T in 2024
  • Zenith Bank grew consistently, crossing the ₦4T mark in 2024 from ₦1T in 2022, showing strong operational expansion.
  • Wema Bank, despite being the smallest, quadrupled its earnings over two years, from ₦0.1T to ₦0.4T.
  • Fidelity and FCMB nearly tripled their gross earnings between 2022 and 2024, showing rising momentum among mid-tier banks.

Access Bank has maintained a firm grip at the top of the earnings chart, with its gross earnings skyrocketing from ₦2.6 trillion in 2023 to ₦4.9 trillion in 2024—almost doubling in just a year. This consistent lead displays its growing dominance in the Nigerian banking space. Following behind, Zenith Bank and FirstHoldCo also saw significant earnings growth, with both surpassing the ₦3 trillion mark in 2024, up from ₦2.1 trillion and ₦1.6 trillion, respectively, in 2023.

What’s most striking is the steep growth curve between 2022 and 2024 for many banks. For example, GTCO jumped from ₦0.5 trillion in 2022 to ₦2.2 trillion in 2024—more than quadrupling its earnings in just two years. Even smaller players, such as Wema Bank, recorded meaningful gains, increasing from ₦0.1T in 2022 to ₦0.4T in 2024. This sharp rise in earnings across the board suggests that Nigerian banks are not just recovering from past economic shocks but are actively expanding and deepening their revenue base.

Source:

Banks’ audited financial reports

Period:

2022-2024
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GTCO turned ₦40 of every ₦100 earned into profit
  • GTCO had the strongest profit conversion in 2025.
  • GTCO turned about ₦40 of every ₦100 earned into profit.
  • Stanbic IBTC followed with about ₦34 profit per ₦100 earned.
  • Zenith made the highest profit, but not the strongest conversion.
  • First HoldCo had the weakest profit conversion among the banks reviewed.
 
Kenyan banks’ non-performing loan ratios fell, with KCB’s ratio down 2.9 points
  • All eight selected Kenyan banks reduced their NPL ratios in 2025.
  • KCB recorded the largest improvement, with a 2.9% point drop.
  • KCB still had the highest NPL ratio in the group at 16.9%.
  • Co-operative Bank remained highly stressed at 15.7%, despite some improvement.
  • Equity Bank and Absa Bank Kenya both ended 2025 at 11.5%.
  • Standard Chartered Kenya had the lowest NPL ratio in the group at 5.5%.
Internationally authorised Nigerian banks have raised over ₦3.3tn since March 2024
  • Internationally authorised Nigerian banks have raised and injected over ₦3.3 trillion in new capital since March 2024.
  • The recapitalisation exercise is being driven by the Central Bank of Nigeria’s requirements, with the deadline expected in March 2026.
  • Zenith Bank currently has the highest capital among the banks shown, reaching about ₦614 billion.
  • Access Holdings has about ₦602.8 billion in total capital.
  • Fidelity Bank raised the largest single capital injection in the group, about ₦437.85 billion, pushing its total capital to ₦564.5 billion.
  • FCMB has the highest previous capital base among the banks listed (₦266.5 billion) before the recapitalisation injection.
Nigeria had about 135 bank accounts per 100 people in 2025, up from 32 bank accounts in 2017
  • Active bank accounts grew from 65 million in 2016 to over 320 million in 2025 — almost a fivefold increase.
  • Bank accounts per 100 people rose from about 32 in 2017 to nearly 135 in 2025.
  • Nigeria now averages more than one bank account per person.
  • The fastest growth phase occurred between 2019 and 2024.
  • Digital banking and fintech adoption played a major role in the surge.
  • The jump after 2020 suggests technology-driven access, not just population growth.
  • Multiple account ownership is now common among users.
Nigeria saw an increase of 2.9 million deployed POS in 2024, following the naira redesign in 2023
  • Deployed POS terminals grew from about 156,000 in 2017 to 8.4 million in 2025.
  • Nigeria added more than eight million terminals in eight years, indicating rapid adoption of digital payments.
  • Growth accelerated sharply after 2020, marking a major shift toward cashless transactions.
  • The highest year-on-year growth (116.8%) occurred in 2024, following the naira redesign.
  • About three million terminals were added in 2024 alone.
  • POS agents became critical financial access points during the period of cash shortage.
  • POS terminals now function as mini-banks in many communities.
  • Financial inclusion has expanded through agent-based banking and POS networks.
UBA is the only Tier 1 bank in Nigeria that grew its profit in the first three quarters of 2025 compared to 2024
  • FUGAZ posted a combined ₦2.91 trillion in profit from Q1 to Q3 of 2025.
  • Access Bank recorded the lowest PAT among the FUGAZ
  • UBA recorded a 3% year-on-year increase in PAT
  • FUGAZ recorded an average year-on-year percentage change of -11.2% for the period
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