Here are Nigeria’s 10 biggest banks by assets

Access Bank, Ecobank, Zenith Bank alongside seven other companies have earned their place in the list of banks with the biggest assets in Nigeria.

According to BusinessDay’s findings, Access Bank top the list with total assets of N15 trillion, followed closely by Ecobank with total assets of N13.37 trillion and Zenith Bank with total assets of N12.29 trillion as of December 2022.

The banks surveyed include Access Bank, Ecobank, Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa(UBA), Guaranty Trust Holding Company(GTCO), Stanbic IBTC, First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Union Bank, Sterling Bank and Wema Bank.

These banks recorded an aggregate total asset value of N70.08 trillion last year, a 21.9 percent increase from N57.48 trillion in 2021.

Access Bank

Access Bank’s total assets rose to N15 trillion in December 2022, up 27.9 percent from N11.73 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities amounted to N13.77 trillion in December 2022, a 28.9 percent increase from N10.68 trillion in December 2021. Access Bank’s total equity stood at N1.23 trillion in December 2022, up 17 percent from N1.05 trillion in December 2021.

Access Bank Group is a financial services conglomerate, headquartered in Nigeria, with subsidiaries in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Gambia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Zambia and the United Kingdom.

Ecobank

Ecobank’s total assets rose to N13.37 trillion in December 2022, 14.4 percent increase from N11.69 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities amounted to N12.44 trillion in December 2022, 15.5 percent increase from N10.77 trillion in December 2021. Total equity grew marginally by 1.8 percent to N934.66 billion from N917.9 billion in the comparable period.

Ecobank, whose official name is Ecobank Transnational Inc. (ETI), is a pan-African banking conglomerate, with banking operations in 33 African countries. It also maintains subsidiaries in Eastern and Southern Africa. ETI has an affiliate in France, and representative offices in China, Dubai, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.

Zenith Bank

Zenith Bank total assets rose to N12.29 trillion in December 2022, 30 percent increase from N9.45 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities amounted to N10.91 trillion in December 2022, 33.5 percent increase from N8.17 trillion in December 2021. Total shareholders’ equity amounted to N1.38 trillion in December 2022, 7.8 percent increase from N1.28 trillion in December 2021.

Zenith Bank Plc is a financial service provider in Nigeria and Anglophone West Africa. It is licensed as a commercial bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the national banking regulator. As of 31 December 2019, it holds $16.1 billion in total assets, with shareholders’ equity of $854 million.

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United Bank for Africa (UBA)

United Bank for Africa’s total assets grew 27.2 percent to N10.86 trillion in December 2022 from N8.54 trillion December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities increased to N9.94 trillion, 28.4 percent increase from N7.74 trillion in the period reviewed. UBA’s total equity amounted to N922.1 billion in December 2022, 14.6 percent increase from N804.81 billion in December 2021.

United Bank for Africa Plc is a Multinational pan-African financial services group headquartered in Lagos and known as Africa’s Global Bank. It has subsidiaries in 20 African countries and offices in London, Paris and New York. In December 2021, UBA received its banking license to commence operations in the UAE.

Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO)

Guaranty Trust Holding Company’s total assets stood at N6.45 trillion in December 2022, up 18.6 percent from N5.44 trillion in December 2021.

The holding company recorded total liabilities which stood at N5.52 trillion, 21.3 percent increase from N4.55 trillion in the period reviewed. Total equity grew 5.4 percent to N931.15 billion in December 2022 from N883.23 billion in December 2021.

Guaranty Trust Holding Company PLC also known as GTCO PLC is a multinational financial services group, that offers retail and investment banking, pension management, asset management and payments services, headquartered in Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria.

GTCO Plc was created in July 2021 following the corporate reorganization of Guaranty Trust Bank PLC (or GTBank) into a Holding Company.

Stanbic IBTC Holdings

Stanbic IBTC Holdings’ total assets stood at N3.03 trillion in December 2022, 10.6 percent increase from N2.74 trillion in December 2021.

Total liabilities amounted to N2.62 trillion in December 2022, 10.5 percent increase from N2.37 trillion in December 2021. The holding company recorded total equity which stood at N407.67 billion, up 8 percent from N376.87 billion in the comparable periods.

Stanbic IBTC Holdings, commonly called Stanbic IBTC, is a financial service holding company in Nigeria with subsidiaries in banking, stock brokerage, investment advisory, asset management, investor services, pension management, trustees insurance brokerage and life insurance businesses.

First City Monument Bank (FCMB)

First City Monument Bank’s total assets amounted to N2.98 trillion in December 2022, a 19.7 percent increase from N2.49 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities stood at N2.71 trillion in December 2022, 20.4 percent increase from N2.25 trillion in December 2021. Similarly, FCMB’s total equity grew 13 percent to N275.88 billion from N243.81 billion in the comparable period.

First City Monument Bank (FCMB), a member of FCMB Group Plc, is a financial services holding company headquartered in Lagos. FCMB Group Plc has nine subsidiaries divided among three business groups: commercial and retail banking, investment banking, and asset and wealth management.

Union Bank

Union Bank’s total assets grew to N2.8 trillion in December 2022, 7.7 percent increase from N2.6 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities increased to N2.5 trillion in December 2022, 7.3 percent increase from N2.33 trillion in December 2021. Total equity amounted to N297.02 billion in December 2022, 11.3 percent increase from N266.87 billion in December 2021.

Union Bank of Nigeria Plc is a commercial bank in Nigeria. It has been operating in Nigeria since 1917. Union Bank was acquired early 2022 by small lender Titan trust bank in a highly controversial $200 million dollars deal, partly funded by Afreximbank.

Sterling Bank

Sterling Bank’s total assets amounted to N1.86 trillion in December 2022, 14.8 percent increase from N1.62 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities stood at N1.7 trillion in December 2022 , 14 percent increase from N1.49 trillion in December 2021. Sterling Bank’s total equity stood at N154 billion in December 2022, 12.8 percent increase from N136.56 billion in December 2021.

Sterling Bank Plc, a full-service national commercial bank, is licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria. The bank provides services to individuals, small businesses (SMEs) and large corporations. As of December 2021, the bank’s branch network numbered 141, distributed throughout Nigeria with total assets valued in excess of N1.6 trillion.

Wema Bank

Wema Bank’s total assets amounted to N1.44 trillion in December 2022 from N1.18 trillion in December 2021.

The bank’s total liabilities grew 22.5 percent to N1.36 trillion in December 2022 from N1.11 trillion in December 2021. Equity attributable to equity holders of the bank stood at N82.54 billion, 17.7 percent increase from N70.14 billion in the period reviewed.

Wema Bank Plc, commonly known as Wema Bank, is a Nigerian commercial bank. It is licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria; the regulator of the nation’s banking sector.