Zenith Bank Emerges Africa’s Best, Retains Nigeria’s Top Banking Crown

Zenith Bank Plc has been named Africa’s Best Bank and Nigeria’s Best Bank at the 2026 Euromoney Awards for Excellence, reinforcing its position as one of the continent’s leading financial institutions.

The lender also retained the Nigeria’s Best Bank title for the second consecutive year, securing both the continental and national honours at the awards ceremony held on July 16 at The Peninsula London Hotel in the United Kingdom.

The awards recognise banks for excellence in areas including strategy, profitability, risk management, digital transformation and overall impact on stakeholders.

This year’s edition attracted more than 770 entries from leading financial institutions across the world.

Commenting on the recognition, the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Zenith Bank, Dame Adaora Umeoji, described the awards as a reflection of the bank’s consistent commitment to excellence.

“We are deeply honoured by these recognitions. Being recognised as Africa’s Best Bank and Nigeria’s Best Bank reflects the trust of our customers, the dedication of our unicorn workforce, and our unwavering commitment to building a truly African global financial institution,” she said.

According to her, “These awards inspire us to do even more to deliver superior value, drive financial inclusion, and support the growth of businesses across Africa.”

Umeoji also commended regulators in the jurisdictions where the bank operates for providing an enabling environment that has supported its growth, while dedicating the awards to the founder of Zenith Bank, Jim Ovia.

She said Ovia’s “vision and excellence have been instrumental to the Bank’s success.”

The recognition comes on the back of another year of strong financial performance by the bank. Zenith Bank reported gross earnings of ₦4.19 trillion for the 2025 financial year, representing a six per cent year-on-year increase, while profit after tax rose to ₦1.04 trillion. The bank also improved asset quality, reducing its non-performing loan ratio from 4.7 per cent to 3.8 per cent.

Shareholders were rewarded with a record total dividend of ₦10 per share, amounting to ₦410.69 billion for the 2025 financial year, double the ₦5 per share paid in 2024.

The bank said it has continued to strengthen investments in technology, artificial intelligence and digital banking while expanding its pan-African footprint and trade and transaction banking capabilities to support businesses across key markets.

The latest honours add to Zenith Bank’s growing list of domestic and international recognitions. Earlier this year, the lender was ranked Nigeria’s number one bank by Tier-1 capital for the 17th consecutive year in The Banker’s Top 1000 World Banks Ranking. It has also received multiple awards for corporate governance, sustainability, digital banking and commercial banking over the past several years.