Ecobank Transnational Incorporated reported a profit before tax of N584.02 billion for the six months ended 30 June 2026, compared to the N620.23 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025. According to the unaudited results, for Q2, profit before tax stood at N313.79 billion, up 16.1% from N270.24 billion in the first quarter of 2026.
Basic and diluted earnings per share stood at 1,111.391 kobo, equivalent to N11.11 per share, from 1,226.698 kobo in the corresponding period of 2025. Key Highlights (H1 2026 vs H1 2025)
Operating income: N1.77 trillion (Up 1.8% YoY from N1.74 trillion)
Net interest income: N1.04 trillion (Up 6.6% YoY from N971.72 billion)
Non-interest revenue: N732.90 billion (Down 4.3% YoY from N766.14 billion)
Operating profit before impairment charges and taxation: N912.62 billion (Up 3.2% YoY from N884.22 billion)
Profit after tax: N408.81 billion (Down 5.8% YoY from N433.88 billion). Total assets: N49.21 trillion as of 30 June 2026 (Down 0.9% from N49.66 trillion as of 31 December 2025). Loans and advances to customers: N15.90 trillion (Down 6.2% from N16.96 trillion). Customer deposits: N37.27 trillion (Up 2.3% from N36.44 trillion)
Cash and cash equivalents: N11.44 trillion at the end of the period (Up 38.8% YoY from N8.24 trillion). Total equity: N3.78 trillion (Down 8.2% from N4.12 trillion).
Driving the numbers
Ecobank’s earnings performance was supported by stronger net interest income, which increased by 6.6% to N1.04 trillion. Interest income rose modestly to N1.52 trillion.
Within interest income, loans and advances to customers generated N747.04 billion, making them the largest contributor. Income from treasury bills and other eligible bills increased by 18.1% to N323.07 billion, while income from investment securities declined by 5.1% to N350.29 billion. On the core expense side, interest expense declined by 5.8% to N486.78 billion. The reduction in funding costs was driven mainly by a 20.0% decline in interest expense on other borrowed funds to N119.86 billion and a 10.4% reduction in interest expense on deposits from banks to N43.58 billion. Interest expense on customer deposits, however, increased by 1.7% to N320.37 billion and remained the group’s largest interest-cost component. Non-interest income fell by 4.3% to N732.90 billion.
Fee and commission income rose slightly to N490.33 billion, with cash management and related fees contributing to N232.47 billion, or approximately 47.4% of total fee income. Credit-related fees contributed a further N132.58 billion.
The modest growth in fee income was offset by weaker trading and foreign exchange income. Trading income and foreign exchange gains declined by 10.4% to N263.43 billion, mainly because foreign exchange trading gains fell by 48.2% to N154.57 billion. This was partly cushioned by a N55.12 billion foreign exchange translation gain, compared with a N46.97 billion translation loss in the prior-year period.
Operating expenses remained broadly stable at N856.51 billion. Staff expenses increased by 2.9% to N380.72 billion, while depreciation and amortization declined by 6.7% to N55.37 billion.
More Read
Other operating expenses also declined marginally to N420.42 billion. Despite the relatively contained cost base, higher credit impairment charges weighed profitability.
Net impairment charges increased by 24.5% to N328.66 billion, moderated by recoveries increased of160.98 billion. Overall, the increase in impairment charges more than offset the improvement in operating profit before impairment, resulting in the decline in both pre-tax and post-tax profit. Balance sheet
On the balance sheet, total assets declined marginally by 0.9% to N49.21 trillion as of 30 June 2026, from N49.66 trillion at the end of December 2025. The movement was driven mainly by declines in loans and advances to customers and investment securities, which offset the strong increase in cash and balances with central banks. Loans and advances to customers fell by N1.05 trillion, or 6.2%, to N15.90 trillion. Despite the decline, customer loans remained the group’s largest asset category, accounting for 32.3% of total assets. Investment securities stood at N10.91 trillion; 22.2% of total assets.
Cash and balances with central banks increased by N2.30 trillion, or 27.2%, to N10.77 trillion and represented 21.9% of total assets. On the liabilities side, deposits from customers increased by N828.49 billion, or 2.3%, to N37.27 trillion, which is 75.7% of total assets. Overall, the balance sheet remained heavily concentrated in customer lending and investment assets, while customer deposits continued to fund most of the asset base.
Market reaction
ETI closed at N88.95 per share on Monday, 27 July 2026, reflecting 112.29% year-to-date, having started 2026 at N41.90 per share. However, it was down 6.57% month-to-date from its 30 June 2026 closing price of N95.20.
