Prime Business Africa
A decline in tax income prevented Ecobank Transnational Incorporated’s profit from nosediving, after the company experienced a slow growth in gross earnings in the first quarter (Q1) of 2025.
According to the company’s condensed consolidated unaudited financial statements for the period ended March 31, 2026, gross earnings increased by 9 percent year-on-year, from N1.05 trillion to N1.14 trillion.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelInterest income accounted for N777.50 billion during the period under review, compared to the N694.51 billion earned in the same segment in Q1 2025, representing a 12 percent growth.
However, the company managed to keep interest expense down by 2 percent, as it dropped to N237.11 billion in the first quarter of this year, below the N243.19 billion expended in the same period in 2025.
This enabled net interest income to grow by 20 percent, according to the financial statement, up from N451.32 billion recorded between January and March 2025 to N540.38 billion in Q1 2026.
In addition, Ecobank’s fee and commission income increased by 8 percent year-on-year, from N220.74 billion to N237.79 billion, while fee and commission expense grew by 13 percent to N25.19 billion, from N22.27 billion.
The lender’s poor earnings continued with a 5 percent decline in trading income and foreign exchange gains, which dropped to N120.41 billion in the first quarter of 2026, from N126.27 billion in Q1 2025.
However, this was offset with a 1,091 percent growth in net investment income, which increased from N218.45 million in the first quarter of last year to N2.60 billion in the same period in 2026.
Also, operating income outstripped operating expenses during the period under review, as the former increased by 12 percent, while the latter grew by 6 percent.
A breakdown showed that while operating income increased from N788.67 billion in Q1 2025 to N881.63 billion, operating expenses jumped from N407.05 billion to N432.15 billion, during the reviewed period.
At the end of the period, Ecobank was only able to squeeze 1 percent increase in profit before tax, which increased to N270.23 billion in Q1 2025, compared to the N267.30 billion in the same period the year before.
However, the company’s bottom line was supported with a 9 percent decline in income tax, after incurring N72.70 billion as taxation in Q1 2026, compared to the N80.19 billion paid out in Q1 2025.
As a result, Ecobank recorded a 6 percent increase in profit after tax (PAT), which soared to N197.52 billion in the first quarter of this year, compared to the N187.11 billion posted in the corresponding period in 2025.
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Prime Business Africa is a business, economy and policy news platform founded in 2021 by veteran journalist and media scholar, Dr Marcel Mbamalu, after he left The Guardian as Editor.
Dr Mbamalu, who serves as Founder and Publisher, set up Prime Business Africa to deliver sharp, data-driven reporting on Nigeria’s markets, trade, investment, and governance trends for decision-makers, entrepreneurs, and policy leaders.
He also writes The Bottom Line, a backpage column for Punch Newspaper every Thursday.
Under his leadership, Prime Business Africa combines deep newsroom experience with a focus on accountability journalism, aiming to bridge information gaps between Africa’s private sector and the global economy.
