Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc reported unaudited profit after tax of N75.372 billion for the nine months through Sept. 30, 2026, up 21% as interest income rose alongside higher credit-loss expenses.
The interim filing listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed pretax profit of N97.282 billion, compared with N70.960 billion for the same period in 2025. Gross earnings were N454.939 billion, up from N341.665 billion.
Interest income reached N353.782 billion, versus N262.418 billion, while interest expenses rose to N147.884 billion from N119.376 billion. Net interest income, the difference between interest earned and paid, increased to N205.898 billion from N143.042 billion.
Interest from customer lending was N244.421 billion, compared with N175.026 billion a year earlier. Customer lending was the largest reported component of interest income, though the filing did not break out how much of its increase came from loan growth, pricing or changes in asset mix.
Credit-loss expenses reached N40.281 billion, up from N8.085 billion. Net operating income after impairment came to N266.774 billion, compared with N214.204 billion, while total expenses increased to N169.492 billion from N143.244 billion.
At Sept. 30, loans to customers stood at N1.820 trillion and customer deposits at N3.843 trillion. At the end of 2025, the respective balances were N1.413 trillion and N2.985 trillion. The nonperforming loan ratio eased to 4.6% from 4.7% at year-end.
For the third quarter, profit after tax was N25.075 billion, versus N20.522 billion in the same quarter of 2025. Pretax profit for the quarter was N41.748 billion, compared with N25.412 billion.
Sterling is a non-operating financial holding company with subsidiaries in commercial banking, non-interest banking and asset management. Its directors approved the unaudited statements Oct. 27, and NGX listed the financial statement Oct. 28.
