Zenith Bank has retained its ranking as the number one bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital in the 2023 Top 1000 World Banks’ Rankings, published by The Banker Magazine.
The bank has held its position as the number one Tier-1 bank in Nigeria, for the fourteenth year in a row, emerging as the 467th bank globally with a Tier-1 Capital of $2.54 billion.
Ebenezer Onyeagwu, the group managing director/CEO of Zenith Bank plc, while commenting on the ranking said, “Being ranked as the number one bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital for the fourteenth consecutive year attests to our resilience as an institution despite a very challenging macroeconomic environment and global headwinds.
“It is also an affirmation of our best-in-class service and commitment to value creation for our highly esteemed customers,” Onyeagwu said.
He thanked Jim Ovia, founder and chairman of Zenith Bank plc, for his foundational role in building the structures and setting the institution on the path to continued success; the board for their vision and outstanding leadership.
He also thanked the staff for their unwavering commitment and dedication, and the bank’s customers for their unflinching loyal support of the Zenith brand.
The rankings, published in the July 2023 edition of The Banker Magazine of the Financial Times Group, United Kingdom, were based on the 2022 year-end Tier-1 capital of banks globally.
The rankings continue to be the primary source for global bank financials and are used by most international organisations in their assessments of banks.
Read also: Nigerian banks pay N1.39bn as audit fees to PwC, KPMG, EY, Deloitte
Tier-1 Capital describes capital adequacy, which is the core measure of a bank’s financial strength from a regulator’s point of view.
According to the ranking, Tier-1 Capital, as defined by the latest Bank for International Settlements (BIS) guidelines, includes loss-absorbing capital, i.e., common stock, disclosed reserves, retained earnings, and minority interests in the equity of subsidiaries that are less than wholly owned.
Zenith Bank’s financial performance for the year was bolstered by an impressive double-digit growth of 24 percent in gross earnings, leading to an improved market share in both the retail and corporate segments of the market.
This occurred despite a persistently challenging macroeconomic environment and headwinds.
Zenith Bank became one of the latest companies to join the exclusive group of stocks worth over one trillion, as its market capitalisation on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) crossed the N1 trillion mark in the third week of June 2023.
This followed the appreciation of its share price by 3.23 percent to close at N32 per share, taking its market capitalisation above a trillion to close at N1.004 trillion.
The bank’s record of excellent performances has continued to earn it numerous awards, including being recognised as Bank of the Year (Nigeria) in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020 and 2022; Best Bank in Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria 2021 and 2022, in the World Finance Banking Awards.
