With a weighted average score of 2.83 points, Nigeria’s most creative bank, Wema Bank Plc, outperformed 12 other banks to take the top spot in the first half of the 2022 fiscal year.
Wema Bank placed first in one category, second in three categories, and third in one, according to a special report on Nigerian banking performance in the first half of 2022 created by an online publication. First Bank and Stanbic IBTC were ranked second and third, respectively.
The growth of the loan book, profits, cost-to-income ratio, and return on average equity are the main measures taken into account in the report.
The 13 banks under scrutiny that are listed on the NSE reported a net profit of N1 trillion in 2021, up from N887.1 billion in 2020.
Wema Bank, First Bank of Nigeria, FCMB, GTB, Jaiz Bank, Access Bank, and Stanbic/IBTC are among the 13 banks that have been examined. Others include Fidelity Bank, Zenith Bank, Unity Bank, Sterling Bank, and Bank of America.
The 13 banks reported an overall Profit After Tax of N501.1 billion for the first six months of 2022, an increase of 13.1% from the N443.17 billion reported for the same period of 2021.
The energy crisis caused a significant increase in the operational costs of businesses operating in the nation, and some banks were forced to ration their operating hours in an effort to control the rise in operating costs, helping the banks to increase their bottom line despite the economic headwinds plaguing the global economy.
In the category of “Leading banks by client deposits growth,” Wema Bank placed first. During the evaluation period, the bank saw a gain in customer deposits of 30.2%; Fidelity Bank and Access Bank came in second and third, respectively, with 13.1% and 12.8%.
Wema Bank placed second in three additional areas, including the growth rates of total assets (+13%), loan books (+19.9%), and profit after tax (+47.8%).
The runner-up, Stanbic IBTC, was the top bank in terms of cost-to-income ratio growth and total asset growth rate.
