In 2025, Nigerian banks sharply increased the volume of bad loans written off compared with 2024, particularly among Tier-1 lenders, according to an analysis by Pinnacle Daily. Shareholders have described the rising bad loans as evidence of a long-standing weakness in credit discipline within the banking sector, warning that it must be urgently addressed. Pinnacle's …
United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) recorded the weakest performances among Nigeria’s major banks in the first quarter of 2026, Pinnacle Daily reports. A review of the financial statements of seven banks for the period ended March 31, 2026, shows that foreign exchange (FX) losses and market-related shocks weighed on …
Shareholders of Guarantee Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) have approved a total cash dividend of ₦466.38 billion for the 2025 financial year, marking one of the highest payouts in Nigeria’s banking sector. At the company’s Annual General Meeting, shareholders endorsed a final dividend of ₦11.76 per share, in addition to an interim dividend of ₦1 …
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced new penalties for banks and cheque printers that fail to follow cheque standards, declaring that offenders could face fines of up to ₦20 million. The new rules were shared in a circular sent on Thursday to deposit money banks (DMBs), cheque printers, and personalisers, according to a …
The 2025 financial year was marked by cautious lending across the banking sector, despite the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) decision to reduce the Loan-to-Deposit Ratio (LDR) requirement to 50 per cent. A Pinnacle Daily review of the financial results of major banks shows that while some lenders maintained loans slightly above the regulatory minimum, …
Nigeria’s banking system recorded a broad-based rise in loan defaults in the final quarter of 2025. This is according to the Central Bank of Nigeria's (CBN) Fourth Quarter 2025 Credit Condition Survey Report, released recently. The report indicated that default balances increased across all major lending categories, underscoring growing repayment stress among households and businesses …
The United Bank for Africa (UBA Plc) has successfully exceeded the N500 billion minimum capital requirement set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for banks with international licences, ahead of the March 31, 2026, deadline. According to UBA’s 2025 half-year audited results, the bank’s share capital and share premium stood at approximately N350 billion. …
Zenith Bank has reported an impairment charge of ₦781.5 billion on its financial assets for the nine-month period ending September 2025, accounting for 39.3% of its projected pre-provision operating profit for the full year 2024. A large portion of this impairment—98.5%—relates to loan impairments, including significant write-offs, which have further weighed on the bank’s loan …
Nigerians are demanding lawmakers' action to extend debate on contract staffing in banks to other sectors where the issue is also of critical concern. Their reactions followed a bill seeking to regulate the employment of staff by Nigerian banks, which has passed the second reading at the House of Representatives. They want any attempt by …
A bill aimed at regulating the employment of staff by Nigerian banks has passed second reading at the House of Representatives. The draft legislation, sponsored by Fuad Laguda, an All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker representing Surulere I federal constituency in Lagos, seeks to amend the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act 2020 to “prohibit, criminalise …
