In the first half of the year (H1’23), customers of nine major commercial banks paid N154 billion in fees for using electronic banking services.
According to the banks’ financial disclosures for H1’23, the charge reflects a 16.7 percent year-on-year (YoY) increase over the N131.97 billion paid in H1’22.
The banks are Guaranty Trust Bank which raked in N21.2 billion from the customers, Access Bank (N43.9), Zenith Bank (N22.27 billion), United Bank for Africa Plc (N51.07 billion), Stanbic IBTC (N2.14 billion), First City Monument Bank (N7.4 billion), Unity Bank (N1.96 billion), Fidelity Bank (N1.85 billion) and Wema Bank (N3.13 billion).
Electronic banking is a service that allows financial transactions to be completed using electronic payment channels such as internet banking, mobile banking, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), and Point of Sale (PoS), among others.
The growth in electronic banking fees and commissions implies that Nigerians’ use of electronic payment methods has grown.
According to NIBSS e-payment data for Q1’23, the volume of e-payment transactions increased by 209 percent year on year to 4.7 billion from 1.52 billion in Q1’22.
E-payment transaction value climbed by 48 percent year on year to N137.52 trillion in Q1’23 from N92.85 trillion in Q1’22.
Meanwhile, in H1 ’23, the nine banks received N66.7 billion from account maintenance fees and commission income, a 14.7 percent YoY increase over the N57.5 billion earned in the same period in 2022, H1’22.
In terms of highest account maintenance fees and commission income, Zenith Bank had the highest (N21.02 billion), followed by Access Bank (N13.36 billion), Guaranty Trust Bank (N10.5 billion), United Bank of Africa, UBA, (N9.6 billion), First City Monument Bank, FCMB, (N3.85 billion), Fidelity Bank (N3.4 billion), Stanbic IBTC (N2.64 billion), Wema Bank (N1.63 billion) and Unity Bank ( N742.6 million).
In terms of growth, however, UBA had the largest YoY growth of 47.6 percent at N9.6 billion in H1’23 compared to N6.5 billion in H1’22.
The banks’ total net fees and commission income increased by 20.7 percent year on year to N448.47 billion in H1’23 from N371.43 billion in H1’22.