February 09, (THEWILL) – Ahead of the March 31, 2026 recapitalisation deadline, Nigeria’s foremost financial services institution, the FCMB Group Plc, is expanding its digital banking landscape to effectively operate in the highly competitive environment that would emerge from the exercise.
Data obtained from the Group’s unaudited 2024 financial statements filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited recently, showed that the 43-year-old company remarkably spent more in the Information Technology and Information Service ecosystem by 56 percent.
Against N16.9 billion in 2023, FCMB Group recorded N26.32 billion in IT/IS expenses in 2024 constituting a 56 percent increase on the back of the commitment to a digital banking ecosystem with a renewed force as the Group CEO, Ladi Balogun disclosed last year.
“We continue to leverage our unique group structure to build a technology-driven ecosystem that is fostering inclusive and sustainable growth in the communities we serve. This strategy enables us to deliver robust performance despite the challenging domestic and global environment.
“Barring unforeseen circumstances, we believe our growth trend will be sustained and accompanied by improving efficiencies arising from greater scale and ongoing digitization,” Balogun said while commenting on the Group’s impressive performance in Q1 2023.
The drive to digital excellence must have contributed to the increase in Contract Service and Training Fees which rose by N4.00 billion to N13.7 billion from N9.7 billion in 2023, constituting a jump of 41.2 percent as the Group invests strategically to achieve the required human capital asset to drive the digital banking initiative.
Additionally, FCMB Group’s impressive result for the FY 2024 demonstrates the continued success of its digital banking initiatives across various business segments.
Digital banking initiatives have gained significant traction within FCMB Group, contributing to its overall performance.
Electronic Fees and Commissions dipped 22.7 percent to N13.6 billion from N17.6 billion in 2023. This, apparently, reflects the impact of the systems upgrade period that occurred among the banks during the year, the substantial growth in the Group’s topline and bottom-line underscores commitment to leveraging digital solutions to enhance customer experiences and drive financial inclusion.
In addition to a Gross Earnings haul of N794.8 billion, representing a 53.93 percent increase, year-over year, against N516.3 billion in 2023, FCMB Group reported a pre-tax profit of N117.2 billion for the year ended December 31, 2024. Post-tax profit also increased by 16.05 percent, standing at N107.9 billion.
This figure represents a 12.32 percent increase year-over-year from the N104.4 billion reported in 2023, amid a significant surge in interest and discount income.
Interest and discount income reached N621.5 billion, reflecting a robust 75.08 percent year-over-year growth from N354.9 billion in the previous year.
This growth occurred alongside an increase in interest and discount income, which rose to N621.5 billion from N354.9 billion the previous year.
On an improved balance sheet growth to N7 trillion from N4.3 trillion (representing a surge of 62.7 percent), Loans and Advances to customers increased from N1.8 trillion in the preceding year to N2.3 trillion.
This demonstrates the Group’s focus on digital lending solutions as well as showcases the commitment to support the economy through its flagship subsidiary, First City Monument Bank Limited.
The commitment to digital expansion would support the Group’s recapitalization bid which recorded an impressive result during its outing in Q4 2024.
FCMB Group, last December, announced the successful completion of its public offer, following the approvals of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission —-(SEC).
The announcement disclosed that the offer was oversubscribed by 33 percent, attracting 42,800 investors with 92 percent subscribing via more convenient digital channels such as the bank’s mobile app and ushering in over 39,000 new investors to the FCMB Group.
The total amount raised and verified by the regulatory authorities was ₦147,508,464,568.60 and ₦144,559,788,701.30 was absorbed through the issuance of 19,802,710,781 ordinary shares at ₦7.30 per share bringing total post-offer issued shares to 39,605,421,562 shares.
The Group further revealed that regulatory approvals had been received to downstream the net proceeds of the public offer from the holding company to the banking subsidiary.
This raised the paid-up share capital and share premium, being the eligible capital base as per CBN’s recapitalisation criteria, of the banking subsidiary, First City Monument Bank Limited, to over ₦240 billion, which exceeds the minimum requirement for a national banking license.
FCMB Group Plc recently listed 19.8 billion shares on the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) after the public offer that was 33 percent oversubscribed.
Analysts say the development signals strong investor confidence in the Tier-1 financial services institution.
The listing, completed on January 30, followed the CBN and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) capital verification and approval.
FCMB Group is listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) and serves over 11 million customers across four platforms: banking, consumer finance, investment management, and investment banking.
Investors’ sentiments towards the Group’s performance reflects on the stock performance which has become investors’ bait in the domestic bourse.
FCMB closed its last trading day (Friday, February 7, 2025) at N11.90 per share on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), recording a 2.6 gain over its previous closing price of N11.60. FCMB began the year with a share price of N9.40 and has since gained 26.6 percent on that price valuation, ranking it 24th on the NGX in terms of year-to-date performance.
“Shareholders can be optimistic about FCMB knowing the stock has accrued 18 percent over the past four-week period—22nd best on NGX,” said analysts at African ‘Xchanges.
THEWILL recalls that First City Monument Bank clinched dual honours at the Development Bank of Nigeria 2024 Annual Lecture Series and Awards.
It was named the “Best Bank with the Highest Impact on MSMEs Accessing Credit for the First Time in Nigeria” and “Highest Disbursement to Sustainability Projects”.
Sam Diala is a Bloomberg Certified Financial Journalist with over a decade of experience in reporting Business and Economy. He is Business Editor at THEWILL Newspaper, and believes that work, not wishes, creates wealth.
