Yemisi Izuora
Shareholders of tier one lender, Fidelity Bank, have applauded the board and management of the bank for delivering an outstanding performance in FY 2024.
Speaking at the bank’s 37th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held virtually on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, the National Chairman of The Progressive Shareholders Association, Chief Boniface Okezie, praised the bank, saying, “This is a superlative performance and we the shareholders are grateful to management and staff for giving us a bank to be proud of. It is also important to note that the bank has earned its spot as one of the top 3 dividend-paying financial institutions in Nigeria.”
On his own part, the Chairman, Zonal Shareholders Committee, Sir Tunji Okelana, recognized the bank’s exceptional leadership, which has seen the bank grow to unprecedented heights.
“The achievements of the current MD have surpassed that of everyone who held that office before her. In addition, staff working with her are assets. They are truly ‘Fidelity, they keep their word’. Without any doubt, I am very happy with the bank”, he declared.
In his remarks at the meeting, the Chairman, Board of Directors, Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr. Mustafa Chike-Obi, said, “Despite the global economic headwinds, we demonstrated exceptional resilience, achieving record breaking growth across all performance indicators, most notably our Profit Before Tax (PBT)”.
He further added that the bank’s stakeholders were all pleased with the success of the first stage of the capital-raise exercise. “The oversubscription of 237.9% in the Public Offer and 137.7% in the Rights Issue is a testament to the strength of our brand and the confidence the investing public has in us. Equipped with this vote of trust, we will proceed swiftly and conclude the second tier of our capital-raise exercise”.
Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe in her statement to shareholders, shared the strategic outlook to build on the bank’s FY 2024 success stating that, “Our priorities in 2025 financial year are to complete the next phase of our capital raise and further strengthen our asset base, enhance operational efficiency and digital innovation and explore strategic regional expansion into select African markets.”
According to the bank’s 2024 annual report available on its website and distributed to shareholders, the bank recorded an impressive 210% growth in Profit Before Tax to N385.2 billion. Gross Earnings increased by 87.7% to N1,043.4bn, driven by 106.9% growth in interest and similar income to N950.6bn. The bank also witnessed an impressive 47.9% growth in deposits from N4.0trn in 2023FY to N5.9trn while Advances grew from N3.1tn in 2023FY to N4.4tn in 2024FY.
Several resolutions were considered and passed at the AGM, including the declaration of a final dividend of N1.25 kobo, the election of non-executive directors -Alhaji Abdullahi Sarki Mohammed and Ms. Obiaku Augusta Okam; the election of Mr Sufiyanu Ibrahim Garba as executive director; and the re-election of non-executive directors -Mr Mustapha Chike-Obi and Engr Henry Obih, among others.
Ranked among the best banks in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank Plc is a full-fledged Commercial Deposit Money Bank serving over 9.1 million customers through digital banking channels, its 255 business offices in Nigeria and United Kingdom subsidiary, FidBank UK Limited.
The Bank is the recipient of multiple local and international Awards, including the 2024 Excellence in Digital Transformation & MSME Banking Award by BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards; the 2024 Most Innovative Mobile Banking Application award for its Fidelity Mobile App by Global Business Outlook, and the 2024 Most Innovative Investment Banking Service Provider award by Global Brands Magazine. Additionally, the Bank was recognized as the Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria by the Euromoney Awards for Excellence and as the Export Financing Bank of the Year by the BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards.