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Access 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 9-month 2026 and H1 2026 interim financial statements on the NGX on 2 November 2026, and its filings are available on its Proshare Investor Relations portal. 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.
Lower Impairments Lift Earnings after Credit Costs
Interest income rose 6.9% to N3.10trn, while interest expense grew 10.1% to N1.81trn, leaving net interest income up 2.7% to N1.29trn. 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. On Proshare’s computation, the N257.08bn reduction in impairment charges compares with a N51.12bn increase in profit before tax.
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.
Costs and Other Income Weigh on Operating Income
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. Proshare computes the nine-month cost-to-income ratio at 63.13%, against 51.7% reported for FY2025 and 65.2% reported for H1 2026.
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Deposits and Loans Drive Balance Sheet Growth
Total assets rose 1.7% to N52.60trn at 30 September 2026 from a restated N51.71trn at 31 December 2025. Customer deposits increased 6.6% to N36.85trn and loans and advances to customers grew 7.4% to N14.33trn, while shareholders’ funds were broadly unchanged at N4.49trn. Total assets were 4.78% below the N55.24trn reported in the H1 2026 results at 30 June 2026.
Most Banking Profit Now Earned Outside NigeriaBuy Maps
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.
Scale-to-Value Priorities
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.
BOFIA Compliance and the Dividend Path
Section 19(8)(c) of BOFIA limits the Bank’s investment in subsidiaries to 10% of shareholders’ funds. The Group has identified capital recalls from six banking subsidiaries to bring the ratio within the threshold. One recall is complete, shareholder approvals have been obtained in four of the remaining five, and regulatory approvals are progressing.
The Group expects to complete the programme within the CBN’s prescribed timeline and expects completion to remove the regulatory constraint on dividend distributions, which it cited in its FY2025 dividend clarification. Any dividend will remain subject to the Group’s financial position, distributable reserves and regulatory approval. Proshare has examined the sector-wide picture in its review of why some bank dividends are paused.
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Market Context
ACCESSCORP closed at N28.60 on Friday, 30 October 2026, the last trading session before the release, down 3.05% on the day and up 36.19% year to date, according to Proshare market data. Monday, 2 November 2026 is the first session in which the market trades on the results.
