African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) posted a 25 percent increase in first-quarter (Q1 2026) profit as rising demand for trade finance and infrastructure funding across Africa and the Caribbean boosted lending income despite a challenging global environment.
The lender reported profit for the three months ended March 31, 2026, of $268.9 million, compared with $215.4 million in the corresponding period of 2025.
The strong earnings performance was driven by growth in the bank’s loan book and higher interest income from increased financing activities across member countries.
Afreximbank said total credit exposure rose by 2 percent to $42 billion at the end of the first quarter, up from $41 billion as of December 2025, reflecting continued expansion in trade and trade-enabling infrastructure financing.
Average loans and advances during the quarter stood at $32 billion, representing an 8 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
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The growth in lending helped lift total interest income by 14 percent year-on-year to $813.6 million, while net interest income climbed 24 percent to $510 million from $411.2 million recorded in the first quarter of 2025.
The bank said the performance demonstrated resilience and disciplined balance sheet management despite softer global benchmark interest rates and heightened economic uncertainty.
Its cost-to-income ratio remained at 19 percent, well below the bank’s strategic ceiling of 30 percent, underscoring improved operational efficiency and profitability.
Asset quality also remained strong, with the non-performing loan ratio at 2.40 percent, broadly unchanged from 2.43 percent recorded at the end of 2025 and below industry averages.
Liquidity levels stayed robust, with cash and cash equivalents of $5.6 billion, accounting for 14 percent of total assets and remaining above the bank’s internal minimum threshold.
Shareholders’ funds rose to $8.6 billion at the end of March 2026 from $8.4 billion at the close of last year, supported by internally generated capital and fresh equity investments received during the quarter.
The bank maintained a capital adequacy ratio of 23 percent, in line with its long-term capital management targets.
During the quarter, Afreximbank also expanded its crisis-response financing initiatives, launching a $10 billion Gulf Crisis Response Programme in March 2026 aimed at helping African economies cushion the impact of disruptions linked to the Gulf crisis.
According to the bank, the facility will support liquidity, stabilise trade and payment systems, and help member countries manage supply-side shocks affecting energy, tourism, aviation, fertilisers, food imports and other critical sectors.
The quarter also marked a milestone in the bank’s regional integration efforts following South Africa’s ratification of Afreximbank’s Establishment Agreement in February 2026, giving the lender full continental coverage across Africa.