Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, reported that higher yields and sustained asset growth pushed net interest income up by 22 percent to N952.1 billion from N781.5 billion in the same period last year.
This was driven by an expansion in loans and advances to customers and increased returns from investment securities. Interest income from customer loans surged to N450.8 billion, while investment securities contributed N547.8 billion.
Interest expense, however, rose sharply by 40 percent to N278.7 billion from N198.9 billion, largely on account of the higher cost of deposits and borrowings amid tighter monetary conditions. Consequently, net interest income settled at N952.1 billion, underscoring GTCO’s ability to maintain strong margins despite funding cost pressures.
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Loan impairment charges increased modestly to N69.8 billion from N63.6 billion, reflecting cautious provisioning amid macroeconomic volatility. After impairments, net interest income stood at N882.3 billion.
Non-interest revenue was buoyed by a 17 percent rise in fee and commission income to N210.5 billion, supported by increased digital and e-banking transactions across Nigeria and its African subsidiaries. Trading gains on financial instruments grew to N77.2 billion from N60.3 billion, though other income plunged to N85.8 billion from N577.4 billion, mirroring the normalisation of FX revaluation gains recorded in 2024.
Operating expenses expanded significantly to N365 billion from N294 billion, driven by personnel, depreciation, and general administrative costs. Profit before tax declined 26 percent to N900.8 billion, up from N1.22 trillion, while income tax expenses rose to N201.2 billion. The bottom line closed at N699.6 billion, with earnings per share dropping to N20.71 from N38.41.
However, the group’s after-tax profit declined 36 percent to N699.6 billion from N1.09 trillion, reflecting moderated foreign exchange gains and elevated operating costs.
GTCO’s balance sheet remained resilient, with total assets rising 13 percent to N16.66 trillion as at September 2025, compared to N14.80 trillion at the end of December 2024. The growth was underpinned by expansion in loans and investment securities.
Customer deposits grew 18 percent to N11.85 trillion from N10.01 trillion, reinforcing GTCO’s strong deposit franchise. Loans and advances to customers rose to N3.24 trillion from N2.79 trillion, reflecting cautious credit expansion in key markets. Investment securities held at amortised cost and FVOCI collectively increased to N4.90 trillion from N4.15 trillion, indicating strategic allocation to yield-generating assets.
On the liability side, total obligations climbed to N13.29 trillion from N12.08 trillion, driven by customer deposits and short-term borrowings. Shareholders’ funds improved to N3.37 trillion, from N2.71 trillion at the end of 2024, supported by retained earnings and new capital issuance of N161.3 billion.
Operating activities generated a net inflow of N1.40 trillion, reflecting strong earnings and customer deposit mobilisation. Interest receipts amounted to N1.27 trillion, while interest payments totaled N310.6 billion.
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Investing activities, however, consumed N809.1 billion, primarily due to higher acquisition of investment securities (N2.64 trillion) and capital expenditure of N131.7 billion. Financing activities recorded an outflow of N226.4 billion, impacted by dividend payments of N239.9 billion and share buybacks of N17.1 billion, partly offset by new share issues.
Overall, GTCO closed the period with N4.50 trillion in cash and cash equivalents, slightly up from N4.29 trillion in the prior year period.
