Zenith Bank Plc has been named Africa’s Best Bank and Nigeria’s Best Bank at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2026, reinforcing its position as one of the continent’s strongest financial institutions after another year of robust earnings growth, digital transformation and regional expansion.
The awards were presented at The Peninsula London during the Euromoney Awards ceremony, where leading financial institutions from across the world were recognised for excellence in profitability, strategy, innovation, risk management and customer service.
The recognition comes as Zenith Bank continues to post strong financial performance despite a challenging operating environment marked by high interest rates, inflationary pressures and currency volatility across several African markets.
For the 2025 financial year, the bank reported gross earnings of ₦4.19 trillion, while profit after tax reached ₦1.04 trillion. Net interest income rose 53% year-on-year to ₦2.64 trillion, supported by higher yields on interest-earning assets, disciplined pricing and continued balance sheet expansion.
Asset quality also improved, with the non-performing loan ratio declining to 3.8% from 4.7% a year earlier. The bank maintained a capital adequacy ratio of 25.3% and a liquidity ratio of 71.1%, well above regulatory minimums, underscoring its financial resilience.
Shareholders also benefited from the bank’s performance. Zenith declared a total dividend of ₦10.00 per share for the 2025 financial year, representing a 100% increase from the previous year’s payout and one of the highest dividend distributions in Nigeria’s banking industry.
Digital transformation remains central to the bank’s long-term strategy. Zenith significantly increased investment in technology infrastructure, spending ₦49.88 billion during the first half of 2025, more than double the amount invested in the corresponding period of 2024. The lender has expanded the use of artificial intelligence, data analytics and Microsoft’s Dynamics 365 platform to improve customer relationship management, credit assessment and lending efficiency.
Its retail banking franchise also continued to expand. Zenith added 2.3 million retail customers in 2025, bringing its customer base in Nigeria to 40.1 million, while its agency banking network grew to 120,000 agents operating across all 774 local government areas.
Beyond Nigeria, the bank is strengthening its pan-African footprint through the acquisition of Paramount Bank in Kenya and by pursuing measured expansion opportunities in selected African markets, including Cameroon, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Commenting on the awards, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Adaora Umeoji, said the recognition reflects the confidence of customers, the dedication of employees and the bank’s commitment to supporting businesses and advancing financial inclusion across Africa.
The latest honours add to Zenith Bank’s growing list of international recognitions and reinforce its standing as one of Africa’s leading banking groups, with investors likely to view the awards as further validation of its strategy of combining strong financial performance with sustained investment in digital innovation and regional growth.
