Ecobank Transnational Incorporated has reported a 29 per cent rise in profit after tax to N950.0bn for the financial year ended December 31, 2025, driven by growth in interest income and non-interest revenue.

This was indicated in the Condensed Consolidated Unaudited Financial Statements for the year ended December 2025 filed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited on Friday.

According to the report, the pan-African banking group’s gross earnings rose 14 per cent to N4.82tn, while total revenue increased 18 per cent to N3.67tn.

Profit before tax climbed 30 per cent to N1.28tn, up from N986.7bn in 2024. Operating profit before impairment charges rose 29 per cent to N1.89tn.

In the period under review, net interest income grew 22 per cent year on year to N2.14tn, supported by a 15 per cent increase in interest income to N3.18tn.

Interest expense rose modestly by four per cent to N1.04tn.

Non-interest revenue also strengthened, rising 13 per cent to N1.53tn, buoyed by a 17 per cent increase in fee and commission income to N1.03tn, and a 14 per cent growth in trading income and foreign exchange gains to N559.36bn.

However, other operating income declined 22 per cent to N68.6bn, while net losses on investment securities widened to N10.98bn.

Impairment charges on financial assets rose 28 per cent to N613.26bn, reflecting higher credit risk provisioning during the period.

Despite this, operating profit after impairment increased 30 per cent to N1.28tn.

Total profit stood at N950.0bn, compared to N735.9bn in 2024. Total assets expanded 14 per cent to N49.44tn, up from N43.30tn in 2024.

Loans and advances to customers increased 11 per cent to N17.09tn, while deposits from customers rose 15 per cent to N36.45tn, reinforcing the bank’s funding base. Total equity strengthened significantly, rising 50 per cent to N4.17tn, driven largely by retained earnings growth.

Equity attributable to ordinary shareholders stood at N2.91tn, up from N1.75tn. Total liabilities increased to N45.27tn, from N40.52tn in the previous year.

Ecobank operates in 34 African countries and several international financial centres, serving more than 32 million customers across consumer, commercial, corporate, and investment banking segments.

United States President Donald Trump has said he made no mistake for a video briefly shared on his official Truth Social account that depicted former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

Former President Barack Obama

Speaking late Friday to reporters accompanying him aboard Air Force One, Trump insisted he made no mistake by sharing the video and does not need to apologise.

“I didn’t make a mistake,” he said.

Trump explained that he did not watch the entire clip before it was posted.

“I didn’t see the whole thing. I looked at the first part, and it was really about voter fraud in the machines, how crooked it is, how disgusting it is.

“Then I gave it to the people. Generally, they look at the whole thing. But I guess somebody didn’t,” he said.

When asked directly whether he condemned the video’s content, Trump replied, “Of course I do.”

The video, which was posted late Thursday, pushed a conspiracy theory about voting machines used during the 2020 election and included a racist depiction of the Obamas.

It remained on Trump’s Truth Social account for about 12 hours before being deleted on Friday morning, following widespread bipartisan calls for its removal.

The White House initially defended the post in an emailed statement to reporters on Friday morning by Karoline Leavitt, Press Secretary,.

She said, “This is from an internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from The Lion King.”

Leavitt added, “Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public.”

Hours after the statement was issued, the video was removed from Trump’s official Truth Social account.

Robert Orya, former managing director, Nigerian Export-Import Bank, (NEXIM), has been sentenced to a cumulative 490 years’ imprisonment over a N2.4 billion fraud, following his conviction by a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja.

The conviction was secured  by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Justice F. E. Messiri sentenced Orya to 10 years’ imprisonment on each of the 49 counts brought against him, with the sentences running cumulatively.

Orya, who headed NEXIM Bank between 2011 and 2016, was prosecuted by Samuel Ugwuegbulam, EFCC counsel.

The anti-graft agency accused him of fraudulently diverting funds belonging to the bank—charges the court held were proven beyond reasonable doubt.

Delivering judgment, Justice Messiri ruled that the prosecution successfully established its case, finding the former bank chief guilty on all 49 counts of fraud.

The conviction has been widely linked to the renewed momentum within the EFCC under Mr. Ola Olukoyede, its Chairman, whose leadership has seen a reinvigoration of the agency’s resolve to pursue high-profile corruption cases to their logical conclusion.

Since assuming office, Olukoyede has repeatedly vowed that no individual, regardless of status or past influence, would be shielded from accountability.

Under his stewardship, the EFCC has intensified the prosecution of complex financial crimes, particularly cases involving public institutions and large-scale diversion of funds.

Observers say the sentencing of a former chief executive of a government-owned bank underscores the EFCC’s determination to restore public confidence in the anti-corruption fight and sends a strong signal that financial misconduct will attract severe consequences.

The judgment is regarded as one of the most significant convictions secured against a former banking chief in recent years, reinforcing the agency’s resolve to clamp down on economic crimes within Nigeria’s financial sector.

During his tenure at NEXIM Bank, Orya was initially credited with efforts to reposition the institution to support non-oil exports and improve its financial standing after earlier setbacks.

However, his administration later became enmeshed in controversies, including allegations of loan disbursement irregularities and procedural abuses.

The case, which culminated in Thursday’s judgment, centred on findings that Orya diverted public funds estimated at N2.4 billion—offences that ultimately led to his conviction and lengthy prison sentence.