Get Guardian on GoogleAccess Holdings Plc has reported unaudited results for the nine months ended 30 September 2026, which management describes as continued progress under its Scale-to-Value agenda.
The Group filed its 9M 2026 and H1 2026 interim financial statements on the Nigerian Exchange Group(NGX). According to the filings, profit before tax rose 8.3% to N667.36bn, and profit after tax increased 5.9% to N474.17bn. For the third quarter alone, profit before tax rose 52.26% to N253.23bn from N166.32bn in Q3 2025.
Interest income rose 6.9% to N3.10trn, while interest expense grew 10.1% to N1.81 trillion, leaving net interest income up 2.7% to N1.29 trillion. Impairment charges fell 73.5% to N92.91bn from N349.99bn in the corresponding period of 2025, lifting net interest income after impairment by 32.1% to N1.20trn from N907.95bn.
Fee and commission income rose 8.4% to N650.87bn and fee and commission expense fell 6.9% to N115.93bn, so net fee and commission income increased 12.4% to N534.94bn. Core operating income, the sum of net interest income and net fees, grew 5.4% to N1.83trn.
Operating expenses rose 11.8% to N1.30trn and total other operating income fell 40.8% to N234.53bn, leaving total operating income 3.2% lower at N2.06trn from N2.13trn. Management lists improving operating efficiency and strengthening operating leverage among its priorities, a theme the Group set out earlier when it positioned efficiency as a growth driver.
Total assets rose 1.7% to N52.60 trillion as of 30 September 2026, up from a restated N51.71trn at 31 December 2025. Customer deposits rose 6.6% to N36.85trn, and loans and advances to customers grew 7.4% to N14.33trn, while shareholders’ funds remained broadly unchanged at N4.49trn. Total assets were 4.78% below the N55.24trn reported in the H1 2026 results at 30 June 2026.
The Banking Group accounted for 96.0% of Group profit before tax. Within it, operations outside Nigeria contributed 82.2% of profit before tax, with International Banking subsidiaries at 43.7%, Rest of Africa at 38.5% and Nigeria at 17.8%. The Group says it is using this footprint to deepen activity in trade finance, transaction banking, payments and treasury services. Recent portfolio steps include the sale of 7.44% of Access Bank (Ghana) in July 2026 and the approved transfer of Access Bank (Kenya) into National Bank of Kenya.
Management anchors its Scale-to-Value agenda on five priorities, namely execution capacity, risk governance and regulatory compliance, capital discipline, operating efficiency and earnings quality.
Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Innocent C. Ike said, “The significant reduction in impairment charges, together with growth in net interest income after impairment and net fee and commission income, demonstrates the resilience of our core earnings base.” The agenda builds on the Group’s earlier statement that it has built scale and now turns to creating value.
