Nigeria’s biggest banks posted massive earnings in the first quarter of 2026, with 10 leading lenders recording a combined ₦4.6 trillion in interest income despite economic pressures and a slight easing of interest rates by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The strong performance highlights how commercial banks continued to profit from high lending rates, government securities and other interest-yielding assets amid the country’s challenging economic climate.
The banks reviewed included Access Holdings Plc, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, First Holdco Plc, Wema Bank Plc, Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc and Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc.
Analysis of their unaudited first-quarter results showed the lenders grew their combined interest income by 8.2 per cent from the ₦4.3 trillion recorded during the same period in 2025.
The earnings were driven mainly by loans and advances to customers, investments in government securities, balances with banks and other income-generating assets.
The impressive figures came even after the Central Bank of Nigeria reduced the Monetary Policy Rate from 27 per cent to 26.50 per cent between January and March 2026 as inflationary pressures showed signs of easing.
Among the lenders, Access Holdings, Zenith Bank and First Holdco emerged as the biggest earners.
Access Holdings posted ₦824.75 billion in interest income, although lower than its corresponding figure in 2025.
Zenith Bank followed with ₦869.1 billion, representing a 3.8 per cent increase from ₦837.64 billion recorded a year earlier.
First Holdco generated ₦704.45 billion, reflecting a 12.7 per cent rise from ₦625.28 billion in the corresponding quarter of 2025.
UBA recorded ₦641.1 billion in interest income, marking a 6.8 per cent year-on-year increase, while Ecobank posted ₦561.08 billion, up 23.4 per cent from ₦454.63 billion recorded in the first quarter of last year.
GTCO also sustained strong growth momentum after recording ₦466.5 billion in interest income, nearly 18 per cent higher than the figure posted during the same period in 2025.
The banks’ earnings surge came amid persistently high lending rates across Nigeria’s economy.
Data from the CBN showed that the average maximum lending rate remained unchanged at 35.17 per cent in March 2026 despite the reduction in the policy rate, making it one of the highest levels ever recorded.
The average prime lending rate also stayed at 19.29 per cent for the second straight month after reaching 19.54 per cent in January — its highest point in almost 20 years.
CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, said members of the Monetary Policy Committee unanimously agreed to allow previous tightening policies continue working through the economy.
According to him, the committee believed the recent slight increase in inflation was largely caused by temporary external factors.
Analysts, however, linked the sustained rise in banks’ earnings to Nigeria’s high-interest-rate environment and prevailing macroeconomic conditions.
Global rating agency, Fitch Ratings, said the CBN’s tight monetary policies remained necessary to control inflation and stabilise the economy.
The Agency, however, warned that rapid credit growth and rising money supply still pointed to a relatively loose monetary environment, adding that negative real interest rates continued to discourage foreign portfolio inflows.
Speaking on the development, investment banker and stockbroker, Tajudeen Olayinka, said the high-interest-rate regime was largely aimed at attracting foreign investment, boosting foreign reserves and supporting the naira.
He added that the continuous repricing of loans and financial securities largely explains the strong earnings posted by banks, although he warned that rising debt-servicing costs could make the policy difficult to sustain in the long run.
“The huge debt service burden on the government and the pressure it exerts on inflation may ultimately raise sustainability concerns,” he said.
