Zenith Bank, a Lagos-based financial services business founded and partially owned by Nigeria’s richest banker Jim Ovia, has exceeded investor forecasts with profits topping $370 million in the first half of its 2023 fiscal year.
According to the recently published financial figures, Zenith Bank’s profit in the first half of 2023 surged by 161.85 percent, jumping from N111.41 billion ($141.95 million) in the equivalent period of 2022 to N291.73 billion ($371.7 million) in the first half of 2023.
This extraordinary triple-digit percentage growth can be attributable principally to a significant increase in the group’s interest income, which increased from N241.72 billion ($306.4 million) to N415.42 billion ($526.6 million).
This was mostly due to increased income from client loans and advances, which increased from N163.41 billion ($207.14 million) to N253.95 billion ($322 million) during the review period.
Despite taking an impairment charge of N207.93 billion ($263.6 million) for its financial and non-financial assets, Zenith Bank produced a spectacular profit in the first half of 2023. This accomplishment was bolstered by a significant foreign currency revaluation gain of more than N355.6 billion ($451 million) within the same time period.
Zenith Bank’s strong financial performance has inspired its board of directors to propose an interim dividend of N0.50 ($0.00063) per share. This represents a 40% increase over the N0.30 ($0.00038) interim dividend paid to stockholders in 2022. The proposed dividend is scheduled to be paid on June 30, 2023, from the retained earnings account.
Zenith Bank, a commercial bank licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria, is largely regarded as a premier provider of financial services in Nigeria and the anglophone West African region. The bank is now Nigeria’s most profitable bank, as well as the largest listed financial services group on the Nigerian Exchange.
Ovia, the Zenith Bank founder, has been instrumental in the evolution and digital transformation of the Nigerian banking sector.
Ovia owns a significant 16.2 percent stake in the corporation, which equates to 5,072,104,311 ordinary shares.
