Banking
H1 2025: Zenith Bank Raises Interim Dividend Payout as Earnings Hit N2.5trn
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Zenith Bank Plc has increased its interim dividend payout to shareholders by 25 per cent, paying N1.25 per share for the period ended June 30, 2025, compared with the N1.00 per share paid in the same period of 2024.
The increment in the cash reward followed an impressive performance in the first half of the year, where its gross earnings surged by 20 per cent on a year-on-year basis to N2.5 trillion from the N2.1 trillion achieved between January and June 2024.
The substantial dividend payout reflects the lender’s exceptional underlying performance and cements its position as a leading dividend-paying bank, reinforcing its longstanding commitment to rewarding its esteemed shareholders.
The financial statements of the company filed to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited showed that the improvement in the gross earnings was driven by higher interest income from N1.1 trillion to N1.8 trillion, reflecting a 60 per cent growth.
This was achieved through strategic repricing of risk assets and effective treasury management.
Net interest income demonstrated exceptional growth, surging 90 per cent year-on-year from N715 billion to an impressive N1.4 trillion, whilst non-interest income contributed N613 billion in H1 2025.
A further look into the results showed that profit after tax hit N532 billion, with earnings per share standing at N12.95 for the period under review.
The bank’s total assets expanded to N31 trillion in June 2025, representing steady growth from N30 trillion in December 2024, underpinned by a robust and well-structured balance sheet.
Customer confidence remained strong, with deposits growing by 7 per cent from N22 trillion to N23 trillion in June 2025, with the loan book at N10.2 trillion in June 2025 versus N11 trillion in December 2024, reflecting its prudent risk management approach.
The lender delivered strong returns with ROAE at 24.8 per cent and ROAA at 3.5 per cent as of June 2025. The cost-to-income ratio stood at 48.2 per cent, reflecting necessary provisioning for regulatory compliance and the impact of inflationary pressures.
Asset quality improved significantly, with the NPL ratio dropping to 3.1 per cent in June 2025 from 4.7 per cent in December 2024, with the company maintaining a fortress balance sheet with capital adequacy at 26 per cent and liquidity ratio at 69 per cent, both comfortably exceeding regulatory requirements.
“Despite the huge provisioning requirements as the industry exits the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) forbearance regime, we’ve seen substantial improvement in our asset quality.
“Our balance sheet remains robust with adequate capital buffers, positioning us well to seize opportunities across our key markets,” the chief executive of Zenith Bank, Ms Adaora Umeoji, stated.
Building on this strong foundation, she indicated that the bank expects to accelerate its growth trajectory in the second half of the year.
She assured shareholders that the robust performance, combined with the improved asset quality, positions the bank to deliver exceptional returns, with expectations of a quantum year-end dividend for 2025.
“Our shareholders can look forward to continued value creation as we leverage emerging opportunities and maintain our strategic growth with strong corporate governance culture,” she noted.
Looking beyond the first half of the year, Ms Umeoji said, “We’re on a solid growth path that we expect to maintain through the rest of 2025 and into 2026.
“Our focus remains on innovation, digital transformation, and developing solutions that address our clients’ changing needs. With improving market conditions, we're well placed to sustain this momentum whilst maintaining responsible leadership and delivering exceptional value to all our stakeholders.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A collaboration to enable fast money transfers into Nigeria has been entered into between Flutterwave and Xoom, PayPal’s international digital money transfer service.
The partnership allows Xoom transfers to be converted by Flutterwave and settled locally in Naira, enabling quick transfers directly into recipients’ bank accounts at Access Bank, UBA, Zenith Bank, First Bank, GTBank, and additional participating banks across Nigeria.
The deal also enables Xoom’s global network with Flutterwave’s local payout infrastructure, allowing users globally to send funds directly into Nigerian bank accounts with improved speed and efficiency.
Nigeria is the leading remittance recipient in Sub-Saharan Africa, receiving over $20 billion in personal remittances in 2024. Despite this volume, receiving international payments has historically remained complex due to FX constraints and settlement delays. This collaboration helps address those challenges in a market of more than 232 million people, where the ICT sector is projected to contribute 21 per cent of GDP by 2027.
By combining Xoom’s expansive reach with Flutterwave’s local compliance and banking partnerships, the two companies are providing a more accessible financial corridor for the continent.
Xoom, a PayPal service, is a fast and secure international digital money transfer service that enables consumers to send money, pay bills, and reload phones for friends and family in approximately 160 markets globally.
As part of PayPal’s global payments ecosystem, Xoom leverages advanced fraud protection, compliance capabilities, and a trusted global network to help millions of customers move money quickly and securely across borders.
“We’re excited to have been chosen by Xoom for their Nigeria expansion. Millions of Nigerians rely on money from abroad to support everyday needs, whether it’s families receiving help from loved ones, freelancers getting paid for their work, or individuals earning income from the global economy. This helps make it easy and more reliable for people in Nigeria to receive funds and stay connected to opportunities beyond borders,” the chief executive of Flutterwave, Mr Olugbenga GB Agboola, stated.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
An initiative known as Nigeria Lightning Rounds, designed to expand funding opportunities for Nigerian startups and small businesses by connecting founders with local and international investors, has been launched by ProvidusUnity Bank, in partnership with US-based global venture firm and accelerator, gener8tor.
Scheduled to be held on July 15, 2026, Nigeria Lightning Rounds will feature carefully selected startups engaging with targeted investors who have expressed interest in supporting Nigerian innovation.
Participating founders will have the opportunity to pitch their businesses through focused 15-minute virtual sessions facilitated by gener8tor and ProvidusUnity Bank’s networks.
The program will focus on high-growth sectors including fintech, healthtech, manufacturing, sustainability, and AI, but welcomes SMEs from all industries, with intending participants urged to apply via https://www.gener8tor.com/lightning-rounds/nigeria.
“We recognise that access to capital remains one of the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Through our partnership with gener8tor, we are creating a platform that connects promising Nigerian founders with investors who can provide the support required to scale their businesses,” the Head of Business Development at ProvidusUnity Bank, Mr Ernest Elue, stated.
“The partnership reinforces ProvidusUnity Bank’s commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by supporting innovation, enabling access to opportunities, and creating pathways for businesses with high-growth potential,” he added.
Also commenting, the Director of Lightning Rounds at gener8tor, Ms Elizabeth Larios, said, “gener8tor is thrilled to partner with ProvidusUnity Bank to extend the Lightning Rounds model into Nigeria.
“This collaboration reflects our commitment to building equitable ecosystems and driving capital to the most promising and underrepresented entrepreneurs.”
Lightning Rounds are a signature initiative of gener8tor’s investment platform, which has facilitated thousands of investor-startup meetings globally. The format is optimised to eliminate friction, reduce bias in early-stage fundraising, and help founders secure capital from investors aligned with their mission and stage. gener8tor’s previous Lightning Rounds for Nigerian Founders in 2025 featured 18 participating Investors and led to 50 investment meetings facilitated.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The verification of the depositors of the 46 microfinance banks, whose operating licenses were revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over a week ago, has commenced.
The exercise, aimed at refunding those whose funds were trapped in the small lenders, is being conducted by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).
In a statement on Thursday, the agency said its staff members have been positioned at the offices of the affected banks across the country to attend to depositors.
It was disclosed that depositors of the defunct banks, who had their Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) linked to their accounts in the failed banks, will be paid through their alternative accounts in existing banks.
However, depositors whose BVNs were not linked to their accounts in the failed banks have been encouraged to visit the affected banks’ offices with proof of account ownership, a passport photograph, verifiable means of identification (Driver’s Licence, Permanent Voter’s Card, International Passport or National ID Card) and BVN.
NDIC also stated that depositors can alternatively file their claims online through its website: www.ndic.gov.ng, to complete the Pre-Verification Claims Form by clicking on the Search Bar, and typing Pre-Verification Claims Form; opening the Form and filling in their details. They can also do so by clicking the link: https://ndic.gov.ng/ndic-pre-verification-claims-form/ or by visiting any of the NDIC offices closest to them to file their claims.
For further enquiries, the corporation can be reached on any of the following lines: 09037273810, 09038197064, 08104220807, 09064657140.
