- Eleven listed Nigerian commercial banks generated a combined ₦209.18 billion from account maintenance charges in the first quarter of 2026, marking a 14.07% increase compared to the ₦183.37 billion reported in the first quarter of 2025.
- Total fee and commission revenues for these institutions jumped 13.64% year-on-year, climbing to ₦984.47 billion up from ₦866.30 billion in the corresponding period of the previous year.
- Financial experts tie the rising fee yields directly to improved business confidence and heightened formal transactions, aligning with broader macroeconomic growth and recent apex bank reforms.
An analysis of the first-quarter unaudited financial statements of 11 lenders listed on the Nigerian Exchange has revealed a substantial spike in banking sector fee revenues.
Eko Hot reports that between January and March 2026, the financial institutions collectively earned ₦209.18 billion strictly from account maintenance charges, which represent regulated fees restricted to current accounts under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s guidelines.
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This performance reflects a 14.07% surge over the ₦183.37 billion generated during the same timeframe last year. Concurrently, the cumulative fee and commission bucket across the sector advanced to ₦984.47 billion, driven by electronic banking expansions, credit-related commissions, and transactional service volumes.
The assessment currently excludes Unity Bank and FCMB Group, both of which are yet to make their first-quarter reporting public.
A breakdown of individual bank performance shows that Zenith Bank claimed the highest standard account maintenance income at ₦25.07 billion, while Ecobank Transnational Incorporated recorded a dominant ₦118.06 billion within its closest equivalent line of cash management and related fees.
Access Holdings secured ₦16.68 billion, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) fetched ₦15.12 billion, and United Bank for Africa (UBA) brought in ₦13.26 billion. In terms of growth pace for maintenance fees, GTCO led with a sharp 42.15% increase, followed by Sterling Financial Holdings at 38.31%, and Wema Bank at 31.30%.
Conversely, Fidelity Bank and Stanbic IBTC bucked the upward industry trend, witnessing modest declines of 2.52% and 4.98% respectively in their current account transaction fee lines.
Commenting on the banking sector’s massive earnings, Dr. Muda Yusuf, Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), stated that the transaction surge indicates expanding economic momentum and renewed investor confidence.
He noted a positive correlation between the corporate health of local enterprises and banking profitability, emphasizing that increased demand for banking operations is always a derived outcome of expanding commercial trades.
This rising transaction frequency mirrors external indicators of macroeconomic recovery; for instance, the Stanbic IBTC Purchasing Managers’ Index hit a nine-month peak of 54.1 points in May 2026, indicating heightened local output and consumer demand.
Furthermore, the industry continues to benefit from institutional resilience following the Central Bank of Nigeria’s aggressive banking sector recapitalization exercise, which saw 30 distinct institutions successfully meeting their updated minimum capital requirements by the end of March 2026.
