First HoldCo nine-month profit rises 63% to N744.5 billion
Results · completedFriday 23 October 2026
First HoldCo reported a 63% rise in nine-month profit to N744.5 billion. Its commercial banking division produced 94% of turnover and 87.4% of post-tax profit.
Strong nine-month earnings from a large Nigerian financial group matter for investors tracking bank profitability this year.
Zenith Bank reported a nine-month profit before tax of about $690 million (N929bn), up 1.24 percent from the same period of 2025. Gross earnings fell 15 percent to about $2.1 billion (N2.87trn), while impairment charges dropped sharply.
Abbey Bank's profit after tax rose 55.9% to about $1.7 million (N2.26bn) in the nine months to September 2026. Gross earnings surged 120% and customer deposits more than tripled.
Agusto & Co affirmed Abbey Bank's A3 short-term credit rating, citing stronger capitalization, liquidity, asset quality and profitability. The bank is preparing to start commercial banking operations in November 2026.
Sterling Financial reported nine-month profit after tax up 21% to about $56 million (N75.4bn), with total assets reaching N5.10 trillion. Interest income rose strongly, while credit impairment charges increased sharply.
GTCO's three non-bank subsidiaries recorded a combined profit before tax of about $18 million (N23.9bn) in the nine months to September 2026, up 70%. Its Ghana banking subsidiary generated about $83 million (N113bn) in profit after tax, the largest offshore contribution.
