Shareholders of Access Holdings Plc have expressed confidence in the group’s long-term value creation strategy as Nigeria’s largest financial services group continues to consolidate its pan-African and global investments into sustainable returns for investors.
Speaking on the outcome of the group’s annual general meeting, shareholders stated that they were confident Access Holdings is positioned for sustainable growth and high value creation in the years ahead.
They said the group’s performance in the past 15 months highlighted the fundamental strength of Access Holdings and provided reassurance on the strategic shift from investments to value creation and shareholders’ returns.
With nearly one million shareholders, Access Holdings has one of the largest shareholder bases across Africa.
More than three-quarters of the shareholders are retail minority shareholders. Domestic minority retail shareholders typically account for nearly half of transactions at the Nigerian stock market.
Shareholder comments
Sir Sunny Nwosu, Founding Coordinator and Leader of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria, said shareholders have no fear about the future of Access Holdings, having seen its transformation from a mid-tier bank to Nigeria’s biggest bank by several parameters.
He explained that shareholder understanding over the non-declaration of dividend for the 2025 business year was based on both past performance and future expectation.
Dr. Faruk Umar, President of the Association for the Advancement of Rights of Nigerian Shareholders, said Access Holdings has endeared itself to shareholders through consistent performance.
“We’ve no cause to worry about Access Holdings. True, dividend is important to us shareholders, but then, when you take everything together, you see that it’s like keeping your money in a compounding interest account, you’re going to get the bumper return at the end,” Umar said.
Mr. Patrick Ajudua, National Chairman of New Dimension Shareholders Association, cited the group’s 2025 performance when gross earnings rose to N5.53 trillion and total assets crossed N51.53 trillion.
“As shareholders, we express our satisfaction with the company’s overall performance, particularly in the light of the decision not to distribute dividends this year. This decision was clarified as a necessary step to ensure compliance with Central Bank of Nigeria’s regulations,” Ajudua said.
He added that shareholders at the general meeting urged the board and management to focus on addressing impairment charges on financial assets and cost optimization.
Boniface Okezie, Chairman of Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria, said the overall assessment of Access Holdings’ performance was strong.
“With earnings per share so impressive at N13.48, the company is certainly capable of rewarding its shareholders for even as much as N5 per share. We know that it’s CBN’s rules that posed challenges for dividend disbursement,” Okezie said, noting that as a holding company, the performance of the bank, which serves as its main subsidiary, impacts the holding company’s ability to pay dividends.
He urged regulators to consider the impact of policies on investors and advised the board to consider proposing an interim dividend by the end of the financial year or by September.
Mr. Moses Igbrude, National Coordinator of ISAN, expressed confidence in Access Holdings’ earnings outlook, noting that the company stands out as a robust and well-structured financial institution poised to provide substantial value to shareholders.
Financial performance
Access Holdings reported 16.2 percent growth in pre-tax profit to N1.01 trillion in 2025, driven by core banking interest income of N1.36 trillion and a 41 percent growth in net fees and commission income to N585 billion.
Operating income rose by 23.9 percent to N3.17 trillion. Gross earnings increased from N4.88 trillion in 2024 to N5.53 trillion in 2025.
Total assets expanded to N51.56 trillion while shareholders’ funds rose to N4.33 trillion by December 2025. Cost to income ratio improved from 56.7 percent to 51.7 percent. Return on Average Equity remained high at 18.4 percent.
With earnings per share at N13.48, shareholders approved the board’s position to focus on structural realignment of the group’s foreign investments in compliance with domestic regulatory requirements, which necessitated the non-declaration of dividend for the 2025 financial year.
In first quarter 2026, pre-tax profit stood at N272.1 billion compared with N222.78 billion in the same period of 2025. Total assets rose to N54.44 trillion while total equity improved to N4.4 trillion by March 2026.
Management outlook
Speaking at the AGM in Lagos, Chairman of Access Holdings Plc, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, reaffirmed the group’s strategic transition towards long-term value creation, balance sheet resilience, and disciplined growth.
“Our strategy, ‘From Scale to Value’, reflects the natural evolution of our journey. Scale created opportunity; value creation is how we fully realise it,” Aig-Imoukhuede said.
He noted that while the group continues to generate strong returns, ensuring that earnings per share consistently exceed the cost of capital remains central to unlocking sustainable shareholder value.
“Our responsibility is to justify the confidence of our shareholders by building an institution that endures, one defined by clarity of purpose, discipline of execution, and sustainable value creation over time,” he added.
