Access Holdings Profit Falls By 2.2% As Impairment Charge Spikes

Access Holdings Plc.’s profit after tax moderated by 2.2% year on year to N447.50 billion, according to its financial statement for the nine-month period in 2025.

The financial services group performance was relatively impressive except for growing concerns over asset quality, which triggered a higher impairment charge on expected credit losses.

Hence, Access Holdings earnings per share (EPS) dropped 35% year on year to N8.00, impacted by the enlarged share base following the banking subsidiary recapitalisation.

Details from Access Group’s unaudited financials showed that net impairment charge surged by 141.5% year on year to N350 billion from N144.9 billion in the equivalent period in 2024.

This sole development damaged what would have been a better earnings season for the group, which continues to expand by acquisition across African markets.

In 9M’25, Net Interest Income (NII) climbed by 48.9% year on year to N1.3 trillion, driven by a sturdy growth in interest income and a slower increase in interest expense. The absence of significant cost pressure triggered a moderation in the cost of funds to 6.2%.

Conversely, non-interest income contracted by 7.8% year on year to N871.8 billion, as a sharp 53.4% drop in fair value and FX gains offset the robust growth in net fee & commission income.

Access Holdings reported that its operating expense (OPEX) increased by 7.1% to N1.2 trillion, largely driven by higher personnel expenses and AMCON surcharge.

Its net impairment charge on financial assets surged by 141.5% year on year, on the back of a N246.8 billion impairment charge on loans— Analysts at CardinalStone Securities Limited say this is likely tied to the clean-up of the bank’s forbearance exposure.

This, however, has a negative effect on Access Holdings’ costs of risk, which climbed to 2.6% from 1.0% in the comparable period in 2024. Operating income expanded by 19% year on year to N2.1 trillion, and this helped to absorb related cost pressures during the period.

With this, pretax profit surged by 10.4% year on year to settle at N616.2 billion in 9M-2025 earnings season from N558.2 billion in the comparable period in 2024.

The group experienced a significant year on year increase in tax obligation, which dented bottom-line pe4formance. Access Holdings income tax expenses surged by whooping 68% to N168.7 billion, from N100.4 billion in the equivalent period in 2024.

Analysts at CardinalStone Securities Limited said this reflecting the impact of lower tax-exempt income, weighed on overall profitability