Five banks grow assets to N20.47trn as H1 profit hits N338.4bn

Five Nigerian mid-sized banks expanded their balance sheets to a combined N20.47trn in the first half of 2026, while their aggregate profit after tax rose to N338.4bn.

Wema Bank, FCMB Group, Sterling Financial Holdings, Jaiz Bank and Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank also recorded combined gross earnings of N1.43trn for the six months ended June 30, 2026.

The performance came ahead of the release of audited first-half results by some of Nigeria’s larger Tier 1 banks.

FCMB Group posted the largest balance sheet among the five institutions, with total assets of about N8.36trn as of June 30.

Wema Bank followed with N5.76trn, while Sterling Financial Holdings recorded N4.67trn.

Jaiz Bank reported assets of about N1.64trn, while Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank had N53.25bn.

The earnings were largely driven by FCMB and Wema, which together contributed N271.25bn, representing about 80 per cent of the combined profit.

FCMB alone recorded profit after tax of approximately N139.9bn, up 90.5 per cent from the corresponding period of 2025.

Its gross earnings increased by 27.8 per cent to N676.2bn, while profit before tax rose 98.8 per cent to N157.3bn.

The group’s total assets grew by 9.53 per cent to N8.36trn.

Wema Bank recorded the second-highest profit among the five lenders, posting N131.37bn in profit after tax, representing a 50.1 per cent increase from the previous year.

Its gross earnings rose 36.9 per cent to N415.09bn, while profit before tax increased by 53.7 per cent to N154.56bn.

Interest income also climbed 42.7 per cent to N342.64bn.

The bank’s total assets increased by 13.5 per cent from N5.07trn at the end of 2025 to N5.76trn in June 2026.

Loans and advances to customers rose by 21.7 per cent to N2.12trn, while customer deposits reached about N3.45trn.

Sterling Financial Holdings reported N50.30bn profit after tax, representing a 20.4 per cent increase from N41.78bn recorded in the first half of 2025.

Its gross earnings increased by 31.5 per cent to N279.6bn, while profit before tax rose 21.9 per cent to N55.53bn.

The group’s total assets expanded by 19.3 per cent to N4.67trn, with customer deposits rising 21.1 per cent to N3.62trn.

Loans and advances also increased by 13.7 per cent to N1.61trn.

However, Sterling’s credit impairment charges rose sharply from N5.21bn to approximately N23.85bn during the period.

The group reported a non-performing loan ratio of 4.7 per cent.

Jaiz Bank, the country’s first fully licensed non-interest bank, increased its total assets by about 27 per cent from N1.29trn at the end of 2025 to N1.64trn.

The bank posted N15.1bn profit after tax, compared with N14.45bn a year earlier, while profit before tax stood at about N15.42bn.

Its gross income from financing and investment transactions rose to N54.5bn from N44.01bn in the corresponding period.

Income from financing contracts reached N29.61bn.

As a non-interest lender, Jaiz Bank operates differently from conventional banks, generating income through financing and investment activities rather than conventional interest income.

Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank remained the smallest institution among the five, with total assets of about N53.25bn.

Unlike the other lenders, the mortgage bank has a more specialised business model focused primarily on housing finance and related activities.

Economist and public affairs analyst, Dr Aliyu Ilias, attributed the strong earnings recorded by banks to increased economic activities, particularly in the stock and foreign exchange markets.

He said the stronger financial position of banks could support broader economic growth if more lending was directed towards productive sectors.

“Banks should actually support MSMEs and agriculture through direct lending,” Ilias said, urging the Central Bank of Nigeria to strengthen measures aimed at increasing credit to manufacturers, farmers and small businesses.

He added that the growing contribution of the services sector to Nigeria’s economy was also supporting the performance of financial institutions.