Seven Nigerian banks recorded a combined profit after tax of N209.16bn in the first quarter of this year, their unaudited financial results showed.
The banks are Zenith Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc and Union Bank of Nigeria Plc.
Zenith Bank led the top seven banks with a profit after tax of N50.53bn for the first quarter ended March 31, 2020, slighter higher than the N50.23bn recorded in Q1 2019.
GTB posted a profit after tax of N50.07bn in Q1 2020, in contrast to N49.30bn in the same period of 2019.
Access Bank’s profit after tax decreased marginally by 0.53 per cent to N40.9bn in the Q1 2020 from N41.1bn in Q1 2019.
UBA saw its after-tax profit grow by five per cent to N30.10bn in Q1 2020, compared to the N28.67bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2019.
FBN Holdings Plc posted a profit after tax of N25.70bn in Q1 2020, as against N15.79bn in 2019.
Fidelity Bank’s profit after tax stood at N5.86bn during the period under review, a 1.35 per cent drop over the N5.94bn posted in Q1 2019.
Union Bank’s profit after tax from continued operations in Q1 2020 stood at N6bn, up from N4.9bn during the comparable period in 2019.
According to the management of Zenith Bank, the bank’s customer deposit mix rebalancing remains on-track as the group added N150bn in savings account balances in Q1 2020, supported by its retail drive.
The bank’s total assets increased by 12 per cent from N6.35tn in December 2019 to close at N7.13tn in March 2020. Its gross loans grew by 11 per cent from N2.46tn in December 2019 to N2.74tn in March 2020.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, GTB, Mr Segun Agbaje, said, “These are very difficult and uncertain times, not just for the financial services sector and the economy as a whole, but also for hundreds of millions of people around the world whose lives and livelihoods have been put at risk by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“At GTBank, we know that the impact of this pandemic may sustain for months to come, but we remain positive that by staying nimble and continuing to build on the strength of our businesses, we are appropriately positioned to cope with emerging economic realities, as reflected in our first quarter result.”
