Getting to be at the top of the pack may not be an easy task but keeping that spot requires a whole lot of work and dedication, a trait that Zenith Bank Plc seems to have mastered.
Zenith Bank which has been named the ‘Bank of the Year in Nigeria’ in The Banker’s Bank of the year awards 2022 also has its group managing director named the LEADERSHIP Chief Executive of the Year 2022.
These two awards are just some of the bevy of awards and accolades the bank has received this year all due its commitment towards professionalism, excellent customer service, profitability and rewards for its stakeholders as well as its outstanding corporate social responsibility.
Nigeria’s Bank of the Year award bestowed on Zenith Bank by The Banker earlier this month, was in recognition of the Bank’s strong management, sound business model and strategy, support for small businesses and efforts to cut energy consumption.
Consistent Growth
This came on the heels of the award as Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital by The Banker won by Zenith Bank earlier in the year. Looking at the 2022 nine months financials of the bank as filed on the Nigerian Exchange Group, Zenith Bank recorded a 20 per cent growth in gross earnings from N518.7 billion in Q3 2021 to N620.6 billion in Q3 2022.
The growth was driven by positive interest-income related performance. Interest income grew by 27 per cent from N308.8 billion to N390.8 billion, driven majorly by growth in risk assets and an improvement in pricing. This also strengthened Earnings Per Share (EPS) by nine per cent to N5.55.
Profit before tax of the Bank was up by 13 per cent year on year growing from N179.8 billion in Q3 2021 to N202.5 billion in Q3 2022, as profit after tax equally grew by nine per cent from N160.6 billion to N174.3 billion in the same period.
Despite the downturn in the economy and most banks’ unwillingness to increase lending, Zenith Bank’s Loans and advances grew by 16 per cent from N3.5 trillion in December 2021 to N4.06 trillion in September 2022, boosting the Group’s interest income and displaying the Group’s appetite for high-yielding risk assets creation. As a result of this growth, the capital adequacy ratio reduced from 21 per cent to 19.1 per cent, while the liquidity ratio reduced from 71.6 per cent to 68.9 per cent.
Total assets grew by 20 per cent from N9.45 trillion to N11.34 trillion in 2022, mainly driven by growth in customers’ deposits, which grew by 24 per cent from N6.47 trillion in December 2021 to N8.04 trillion in September 2022 due to the market’s confidence in the brand.
Formidable Virtues, Values and Vision
Commenting on how the bank has been able to sustain its leadership position in the Nigerian banking space, the group managing director, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, said Zenith Bank has been able to keep to the values on which it was built on whilst innovating to meet up with the changing environment.
Onyeagwu, whilst receiving the Letter of Notification of LEADERSHIP Chief Executive of the Year 2022 Award, he thanked the management of EADERSHIP for keeping up with the vision of its founder, the late Sam Nda-Isaiah, saying the newspaper has been able to maintain standard and professionalism.
Also, appreciating LEADERSHIP for the upcoming which holds on January 31, 2023 at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, FCT, he said “when you say you look at the performance of Zenith and its trajectory, somehow it is good to be CEO because you take credit for what everybody has done. So, the credit for this honour, the recognition is actually to the team.
“We have a roadmap we are following. There is nothing else we are doing other than following the vision of our founder and chairman, Dr Jim Ovia. We are privileged to have had a foundation that is built on very formidable virtues and values that continue to withstand the test of time.
“Such that even when we see we know that things are changing market, regulation is changing, market conditions are changing that knowledge is driving different new perspective and rendering incumbent and business model irrelevant. We still find that our bedrock still remains that vision, the foundation, which gives us that firepower to become resilient and be innovative.
Sustained by Innovation
“We thank LEADERSHIP for recognizing what we are doing in our modest corner. All we try to do is to keep dominating our space. We don’t know by dominating our space that we are doing better than others. All we know is whatever we do we do it well. We are not competing with anyone but we are competing against ourselves, which is why in a very, very long time, Zenith Bank will continue to be very outstanding.
“Zenith Bank will continue to flourish because if what we have seen in the year of the COVID, we have seen the digital disruption, we have seen very aggressive and extremely hawkish regulatory environment, different headwinds and we are able to navigate and achieve success. I say it with all sense of modesty and commitment in terms of what we have and the kind of foundation we have,” added Onyeagwu.
A History of Honours
Having clinched the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital, for the 13th consecutive year, in the 2022 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking published by The Banker Magazine, Zenith Bank was also named the Best Bank in Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards. It also has in its basket of laurels, the Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria 2021 and 2022 by the World Finance Banking Awards.
The bank also clinched best Corporate Governance Bank, Nigeria in the World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022; Best in Corporate Governance’ Financial Services’ Africa, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, by the Ethical Boardroom; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria and Best Innovation In Retail Banking, Nigeria in the International Banker 2022 Banking Awards.
Also, the Bank emerged as the Most Valuable Banking Brand in Nigeria in the Banker Magazine Top 500 Banking Brands 2020 and 2021, Bank of the Year (Nigeria) in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020 and Retail Bank of the year, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, at the BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards.
Zenith Bank’s love for impacting its environment is visibly seen in its dedication to lighting up Victoria Island area of Lagos every year for the past 16 years without fail. This year at the light-up ceremony at the Ajose Adeogun roundabout tagged “Let There Be Light”, Onyeagwu had joined the many voices calling for peace and love at a time when it is most needed.
