Shares of Wema Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), and Zenith Bank have led a strong rally in Nigeria’s banking sector, recording significant year-to-date gains and outperforming the broader NGX Banking Index.
Wema Bank topped the chart with a return of 119.23% as of July 28. Stanbic IBTC followed with a 73.18% gain, while GTCO rose by 65.09%. Zenith Bank also delivered strong double-digit returns, helping drive the NGX Banking Index up by over 18% this year.
The surge is linked to renewed investor interest following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s bank recapitalisation directive, which requires a substantial increase in minimum capital. Anticipation of mergers, acquisitions, and stronger financial disclosures has intensified trading in bank stocks.
GTCO became the first Nigerian financial institution listed on the exchange to cross N100 per share, signalling rising investor confidence. The rally has added trillions of naira to the market capitalisation of top-tier banks.
Combined, GTCO, Zenith Bank, Access Holdings, UBA, and Ecobank now contribute over N11.07 trillion to the banking sector’s valuation, accounting for more than 15% of the entire Nigerian Exchange.
Analysts attribute the performance to improved market liquidity, lower yields on fixed-income securities, and expectations of strong half-year earnings. The NGX Banking Index gained more than 20% in July alone.
With recapitalisation efforts gathering momentum, analysts expect the bullish trend in banking stocks to continue into the second half of the year.
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