GCR upgrades Fidelity Bank rating on stronger capital position

GCR Ratings has upgraded Fidelity Bank Plc’s national scale long term issuer rating to A Plus (NG), from A (NG), while affirming its short term issuer rating at A1 (NG). The outlook remains stable.

The upgrade reflects Fidelity Bank’s significantly strengthened capital position following the addition of NGN227.0 billion to its total core capital. GCR also recognised the bank’s strong domestic market position, stable funding base and healthy liquidity profile.

Fidelity Bank’s competitive position remains a key rating strength, supported by its strong domestic franchise and nearly four decades of operating experience. With total assets of NGN10.5 trillion and an estimated 8.0 percent share of the banking industry’s gross loans as of December 2025, the bank ranks as Nigeria’s sixth largest bank.

The bank also plans to leverage its international banking licence to enter three additional African markets over the medium term. The expansion is expected to diversify its country exposure and further strengthen its competitiveness among rated peers.

Fidelity Bank raised NGN227.0 billion in additional equity capital in 2025, enabling it to fully comply with the revised capital requirement for its licence category. The capital was officially recognised as core capital in 2026.

Consequently, the bank’s GCR core capital ratio increased substantially to 29.4 percent at the end of March 2026, from 17.2 percent in December 2025. Its stage three loan loss reserve coverage also remained strong at more than 100.0 percent.

GCR expects the bank’s core capital ratio to remain above 20.0 percent over the outlook period, supported by good earnings retention. The rating agency also noted that Fidelity Bank’s exposure to the oil and gas sector is diversified across the upstream, downstream and services segments. Foreign currency exposure is further moderated through natural hedging.

Fidelity Bank’s funding profile remains positive, underpinned by a large and stable deposit base. Customer deposits grew by 16.1 percent as of December 2025 and by a further 7.1 percent as of March 2026, reaching NGN7.4 trillion.

Customer deposits accounted for 89.5 percent of the bank’s total funding base in March 2026. Approximately 90 percent of these deposits were held in relatively inexpensive current and savings accounts, providing a strong foundation for sustainable funding.

The bank also maintained a robust liquidity position, supported by a substantial portfolio of liquid assets. Its liquid assets to customer deposits ratio stood at 56.9 percent in March 2026, while liquid assets covered wholesale funding by 4.8 times.

The stable outlook reflects GCR’s expectation that Fidelity Bank will maintain a strong financial profile, with its core capital ratio remaining above 20.0 percent, supported by stable funding, strong liquidity and resilient asset quality indicators.