Zenith Bank Plc announced its intention to grow into Côte d’Ivoire and several other French-speaking African countries after successfully raising N614.65 billion through a hybrid capital exercise. The fresh capital injection will support the bank’s ambitious regional expansion, especially in West and Central Africa, with potential movement into East Africa on the horizon.
At the closing ceremony on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), Group CEO Adaora Umeoji revealed that part of the proceeds are already being used to broaden the bank’s operating locations.
“Since the capital raise exercise, we’ve been able to use part of the money to expand our footprints. We started by opening our Paris branch, and we are going to move from there to Côte d’Ivoire, which we are already processing the license,” she stated.
Obtaining operational approval in Côte d’Ivoire will enable Zenith Bank to access regulatory passporting rights, which allow financial institutions licensed in one country to operate in others, across eight additional Francophone African markets. This effort ties into the bank’s strategy of following its customer base into growing markets where they already have business.
“This expansion strategy is a result of us following our customers’ business and ensuring that we go to countries and economies where we can scale and be able to provide more returns for our shareholders,” Umeoji added.
The hybrid capital raise exceeded expectations, boosting Zenith Bank’s capital base by 160%, and lifting it to N614.65 billion. As a result, its balance sheet has strengthened, and its shareholder base has widened.
“This recapitalization exercise has really helped us, positioned us, grown our business, and it has made us have more than 700,000 shareholders since we got listed,” Umeoji said.
In its financial results for the first half of 2025 (to June 30), Zenith Bank reported strong growth: pre-tax profit reached N625.63 billion, while after-tax profit was N532.18 billion. Gross earnings increased by about 20% year-on-year to N2.521 trillion, largely driven by interest income. Interest income alone rose by 60% compared to the same period last year. The bank also raised its interim dividend from N1.00 to N1.25 per share, which is a 25% increase–in recognition of its performance and to reward its shareholders.
