Fidelity Bank Plc’s nine-month 2025 financial results paint a picture of a fast-growing institution expanding aggressively across key segments but contending with new cost pressures, regulatory levies, and macroeconomic volatility that continue to weigh on profitability.
The lender posted one of the strongest top-line performances in the industry, yet earnings at the bottom line softened, reflecting the realities of Nigeria’s high-inflation and high-interest-rate environment.
Gross earnings surged 44 percent to N1.11 trillion from N772.5 billion in the same period of 2024, according to the bank’s financials for the period ended September 30, 2025.
The growth was driven by higher interest income as the bank expanded its loan book, improved yields on interest-earning assets, and recorded significant foreign-exchange revaluation gains in earlier quarters.
Interest income rose to N843.5 billion, up from N583.5 billion, reflecting the strong uplift from both volume and yield effects.
Despite the strong revenue momentum, rising funding costs, and a fast-maturing balance sheet, tempered profitability. Interest expense more than doubled to N414.2 billion, driven by higher market rates and strong competition for deposits.
Still, net interest income grew 20 percent to N565.3 billion, pointing to Fidelity Bank’s ability to reprice assets faster than liabilities in a tightening monetary environment.
Read also: Big banks’ profits drop 15% in 9 months as revaluation gains fade
One of the most notable improvements in the 9 months was the sharp drop in credit impairment charges. The bank booked N14.56 billion in credit loss expense, down from N48.25 billion the year before, marking a reduction of more than 70 percent.
This suggests healthier asset quality or improved recoveries, even as the bank increased its exposure to risk assets. The loan book expanded to N5.05 trillion, almost N500 billion higher than year-end 2024 levels.
Customer deposits, a key indicator of market confidence and competitiveness, grew 17 percent year-to-date to N6.94 trillion, with domiciliary deposits contributing significantly to the expansion.
FX-linked deposits rose to N3.33 trillion, reflecting resilient inflows from Nigeria’s remittance and trade channels as well as customers’ preference for foreign-currency assets in an inflationary economy.
Liquidity improved substantially as cash and cash equivalents nearly doubled to N1.30 trillion from N707.5 billion at the end of 2024, strengthening the bank’s position to support lending, absorb shocks, and meet regulatory liquidity ratios.
However, bottom-line performance softened. Profit before tax fell 6 percent to N268.2 billion, from N284.1 billion in the same period of 2024, while net income slipped to N206.7 billion from N224.6 billion.
The decline was driven partly by the introduction of the windfall tax—a new levy on FX-related gains—which cost the bank N2.83 billion in the period. Higher operating expenses and a jump in the effective tax rate to nearly 30 percent added further pressure.
Earnings per share dropped more sharply, declining 41 percent to 412 kobo, due to both lower profit and the expanded share count following the bank’s capital raise earlier in the year.
Overall, the nine-month results highlight Fidelity Bank’s strong growth trajectory, rising market share, and expanding balance sheet strength. Yet they also reflect the cost and regulatory headwinds the lender and the broader banking sector will continue to face as Nigeria’s macroeconomic reforms reshape the operating landscape.