Eight Nigerian Banks Spend N4.61tn on Salaries, Operations in 2024

Eight Nigerian banks spent a total of N4.61 trillion on personnel and operating expenses in 2024, marking a 107.8% jump from N2.2 trillion in 2023.

Data from annual financial reports submitted to the Nigerian Exchange show sharp cost increases across the board:

- Access Holdings led with N960.8bn in operating expenses, up 106.3%; personnel costs rose 127.5% to N381.4bn.  

- UBA spent N682.9bn, up 83.2%.  

- First HoldCo recorded N568.3bn in expenses, up 66.4%.  

- Zenith Bank spent N586.6bn, a 101.1% increase.  

- GTCO expenses rose 56.2% to N259.6bn, with salaries up 89.3%. 

- Fidelity Bank spent N242.7bn, up 79.3%.  

- Wema Bank and FCMB posted 68.9% and 47.8% increases respectively.

The spike reflects mounting cost pressures in the sector amid inflation and naira devaluation.