When the management of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) in July 2023 announced that it was reclassifying Fidelity Bank Plc from small-price stock to medium-price stock, financial analysts concluded that the road to attaining Tier1 status by the bank is closer than ever imagined.
In full year 2022, Fidelity Bank briefly fell into the Tier 1 category and saw the highest gross earnings of N337.10 billion and profit before tax of N53.68 billion.
The bank’s higher interest income relative to interest expense led to a net interest margin of 7.70 per cent, ahead of other similar banks.Regarding its financial position, the bank had the highest total assets at N3.99 trillion in 2022.
The bank’s relatively low-risk asset exposure kept non-performing loans (NPLs) at 2.90 per cent, the second lowest in the Tier 2 category ahead of Wema Bank.
Although the group has struggled with curtailing operating costs with CIR above 50 per cent, Fidelity earned the second lowest CIR among Tier 2 banks at 59.00 per cent, slightly behind FCMB at 53.90 per cent in FY 2022.
Seunmanuel Faleye is a brand and communications strategist. He is a covert writer and an overt creative head. He publishes Apple’s Bite International Magazine.
