Here are the 5 Strongest Banks in Nigeria

The strongest banks in Nigeria usually have a common indicator of international reckoning, shareholders funds, profitability, earnings, total assets, and customer deposits. 

According to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the banking sector’s capital adequacy ratio (15.5%) and liquidity ratio (41.3%) remain above prudential standards.

Bond credit rating business, Moody’s Investors Service has maintained a negative outlook for Nigerian banks. Over the next 12 to 18 months, the gloomy outlook reflects expectations of increased asset risk and deteriorating government assistance capacity. Nigerian banks’ loan quality is projected to decline in 2022 as the government’s and central bank’s coronavirus assistance measures are phased off.

However, in the ranking of 1000 banks globally, some Nigerian banks have been featured in the list. Here are five of the strongest banks in Nigeria.

Access Bank – N8.7 trillion assets

In terms of assets, deposits, loans, customer service, and branch networks, Access Bank is, without a doubt, one of Nigeria’s top five largest and strongest banks.

The bank has many locations throughout Nigeria, and its internet banking system is impressive. Institutional, commercial, transaction services, retail banking, and financial markets are the five business segments it serves its users.

On April 1, 2019, Access Bank and Diamond Bank announced their merger deal, and the bank has been operating as Africa’s largest commercial bank ever since.

Following the merger, Access Bank announced its intention to establish a larger banking institution in the country, giving rise to its massive financial-administrations provider.

Access Bank’s assets were estimated at N8.7 trillion as of December 2020. The value of the stockholders’ equity was estimated to be at $4 billion.

Zenith Bank- N8.5 trillion assets

Zenith has an immense financial experts co-op in Nigeria and other Anglophone West African countries.

It has nearly 500 branches in all Nigerian states, including the Federal Capital Territory, and various business locations. Ghana, the United Kingdom, Gambia, the United Arab Emirates, China, and Sierra Leone all have backups.

Zenith Bank offers user-friendly mobile banking services and outstanding human relations discipline among its customer support agents.

Not only that, Zenith Bank has a foreign currency exchange license from the Nigeria Stock Exchange and is also registered with the London Stock Exchange.

Zenith Bank collected N6.35 trillion in total assets in 2019 and a whopping N8.5 trillion in 2020 in a quest to make the list of Nigeria’s largest banks.

However, as of December 31, 2020, the bank shareholders’ equity was estimated to be around 850,353 million.

United Bank for Africa (UBA) – N7.7 trillion assets 

The United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) was also named one of Nigeria’s most powerful financial institutions. The bank is the main pan-African bank and financial administration cooperative.

UBA is Africa’s most versatile and best banking group, with operations in more than 20 African countries and offices in three global financial centers, namely London, New York, and Paris.

Since its inception, the bank has continued to grow. In 2020, the bank recorded a total asset value of N7.7 trillion. It also got Net Loans worth N3.2 trillion, an impressive 20.2 percent Year-on-Year increase in the advance book.

First Bank of Nigeria – N7.7 trillion assets

The First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Limited, as its name suggests, is Nigeria’s first and most prominent bank. In fact, because of its first-rate services and history, it is perhaps Nigeria’s best bank.

First Bank provides a unique and comprehensive range of corporate and retail financial administrations to over 17 million customer accounts through 44,000 additional business locations.

The famous The Banker magazine, published by the Financial Times Group, voted FirstBank the Best Bank Brand in the country for five years in a row — 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015.

Apart from its headquarters and numerous other branches around Nigeria, the First Bank also has a large business network of over 750 business areas spread over Africa, the United Kingdom, and other delegate offices in Beijing, Abu Dhabi, and Johannesburg.

This financial institution’s inclusion on the list of the top banks in Nigeria is not an oversight; the bank lives up to its reputation. First Bank’s assets totalled N5.2 trillion in 2019, and by December 31, 2020, they had increased rapidly to N7.7 trillion.

GTCO – N4.9 trillion assets

The list of Nigeria’s top five most influential financial organizations would be incomplete without mentioning Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc  (GTCO) Plc. 

GTBank provides dependable delivery of excellent and creative financial arrangements, and its superb customer care has helped it achieve enormous success and an enviable fan following.

In 2016, GTBank received several national and international awards for administration and product development. It was named the Best Banking Group by World Finance Magazine, and it was also named the Most Innovative Bank in Africa by “The Banker Magazine (Africa),” among many others.

The bank now runs on assets valued at 4.9 trillion dollars, with shareholders’ backing valued at roughly 600 billion dollars.

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