Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc grew interest income to N458.46 billion in the first quarter of 2026, reflecting expanded lending and improved yields on earning assets, even as profit after tax declined due to higher operating and tax costs. The group’s shareholders, meeting separately to consider the 2025 full‑year results, commended management for paying the banking sector’s highest dividend of N12.76 per share, a record that underscores the institution’s commitment to shareholder returns despite a challenging macroeconomic environment.
According to the unaudited financial statement for the quarter ended 31 March 2026, interest income rose from N386.03 billion in the same period of 2025, driving net interest income to N356.29 billion from N318.17 billion. Interest expense increased to N110.70 billion, reflecting higher funding costs on deposits and borrowings. Loan impairment charges declined to N7.95 billion from N13.48 billion, signalling improved asset quality. Profit before tax edged up to N302.89 billion from N300.26 billion, but profit after tax fell to N218.13 billion from N257.91 billion, dragged by a rise in income tax expense to N84.76 billion and a swing in other income to a loss of N1.57 billion from a gain of N30.68 billion a year earlier.
On the balance sheet, total assets expanded to N18.75 trillion, with customer deposits rising to N13.21 trillion and loans to customers at N3.17 trillion. Earnings per share declined to N5.89 from N7.83, yet the company’s share price has climbed 43.3 per cent year‑to‑date to N129.85, giving GTCO a market capitalisation of N4.75 trillion on the Nigerian Exchange.
At the group’s fifth Annual General Meeting, shareholders lauded the board for delivering a total dividend of N12.76 per share for the 2025 financial year, comprising an interim dividend of N1 and a final dividend of N11.76. Timothy Adesiyan, president of the Nigerian Shareholders’ Solidarity Association, expressed excitement at what he called the management’s discipline in sustaining payouts. Bisi Bakare, chairman of the Pragmatic Shareholders Association of Nigeria, noted that GTCO had made history as the first Nigerian bank to reward shareholders with such a high dividend.
Board Chairman Suleiman Barau told shareholders that the group has evolved from a single‑line banking institution into a broader financial services ecosystem encompassing payments, funds management and pension administration. “This diversification is not simply a structural change; it represents a strategic effort to build an institution that can serve customers more comprehensively while creating multiple engines of sustainable growth,” he said.
Group Chief Executive Officer Segun Agbaje pointed to the successful listing of GTCO’s shares on the London Stock Exchange in 2025 as a landmark achievement, making it the first financial services institution in West Africa to list ordinary shares on the LSE’s main market. Looking to 2026, Agbaje said the group’s execution discipline would remain its defining advantage. “Our ecosystem is stronger, our ambition greater, and our commitment unwavering,” he added.
Despite the first‑quarter dip in net profit, the combination of strong interest income growth, improved asset quality and a record dividend payout reinforces GTCO’s position as one of Nigeria’s most resilient financial institutions, balancing near‑term earnings pressures with long‑term shareholder value.
