By Annette Ikponmwonba | November 5th, 2026
Key Points
· Access Holdings Plc posted N474.2bn profit after tax for the nine months to September 2026, up 5.9 per cent
· Profit before tax rose 8.3 per cent to N667.4bn from N616.2bn in 2025
· Impairment charges fell 73.5 per cent to N92.9bn, lifting net interest income after impairment by 32.1 per cent to N1.2tn
· Operating expenses rose 11.8 per cent to N1.3tn, while other operating income fell 40.8 per cent to N234.5bn
· Total assets reached N52.6tn, customer deposits N36.9tn and loans and advances N14.3tn
· Operations outside Nigeria accounted for 82.2 per cent of banking profit before tax
Main Story
Access Holdings Plc has posted a strong nine-month result for 2026, recording N474.2bn profit after tax. The lender disclosed this in a statement on Thursday. Profit before tax increased 8.3 per cent to N667.4bn, from N616.2bn in 2025, while profit after tax rose 5.9 per cent.
Interest income rose 6.9 per cent to N3.1tn and net interest income increased 2.7 per cent to N1.3tn. A sharp 73.5 per cent drop in impairment charges to N92.9bn pushed net interest income after impairment up 32.1 per cent to N1.2tn. Fee and commission income grew 8.4 per cent to N650.9bn, lifting net fee and commission income 12.4 per cent to N534.9bn and core operating income to N1.83tn.
The balance sheet also grew. Total assets stood at N52.6tn as at September 30, 2026, up 1.7 per cent from year-end 2025. Customer deposits grew 6.6 per cent to N36.9tn, loans and advances rose 7.4 per cent to N14.3tn, and shareholders’ funds remained stable at N4.5tn.
The Issues
The results were not without pressure. Operating expenses climbed 11.8 per cent to N1.3tn, while other operating income fell 40.8 per cent to N234.5bn, causing total operating income to decline 3.2 per cent to N2.06tn. Much of the profit growth therefore came from lower impairment charges rather than stronger income, which raises questions about how repeatable the gains are.
This is why operating efficiency sits at the heart of the group’s Scale-to-Value agenda. Management described it as “a transition from rapid expansion to improving the quality, cost discipline, and productivity of our established infrastructure to maximise shareholder returns.”
Regulatory compliance is another issue. Capital recalls from six banking subsidiaries are underway to bring Access Bank’s investment-in-subsidiaries ratio within the statutory 10 per cent threshold under Section 19(8)(c) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act. The group is also heavily reliant on foreign operations, with Nigeria contributing only 17.8 per cent of banking profit before tax.
What’s Being Said
Management said the capital recall process “is progressing steadily, which upon completion will align our structure with statutory thresholds and remove historical constraints on dividend distributions., The banking group generated 96.0 per cent of group unaudited profit before tax. Of banking profit, international banking subsidiaries contributed 43.7 per cent, Rest of Africa 38.5 per cent and Nigeria 17.8 per cent. The group is using this footprint to expand trade finance, transaction banking, payments and treasury services, The Scale-to-Value framework rests on five pillars: execution capacity, risk governance, capital discipline, operating efficiency and earnings quality.
What’s Next
Completion of the capital recalls is expected to clear the path for future dividend distributions, though final decisions will depend on financial conditions, reserves, capital needs and board approvals, Attention will turn to whether management can curb rising costs and revive other operating income, and whether the group’s full-year results confirm the improvement in earnings quality.
Bottom Line
Access Holdings delivered higher profit on the back of lower impairments and strong international earnings, but rising costs and weaker other income mean the Scale-to-Value push on efficiency and the dividend path will be the real tests ahead.
