Seven Nigerian banks paid a total of ₦674.68bn in taxes in the first half of 2025 — a 14.69% rise from ₦588.25bn recorded in the same period of 2024.
An analysis of financial statements from Ecobank, Guaranty Trust Holding Company, Access Holdings, Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa, FBN HoldCo, and Wema Bank revealed that the tax variations were driven by earnings growth and regulatory levies.
According to Investopedia, a tax expense is a liability owed to a federal, state, or local government within a given period, typically over the course of a year.
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated emerged as the highest tax-paying institution, with N186.35bn in income tax for the first half of 2025, up 41 per cent from N132.49bn in 2024.
Guaranty Trust Holding Company followed with N151.89bn in total tax expenses, a sharp rise from N98.21bn in the same period last year. The growth stemmed from higher company income tax of N122.66bn, education tax of N8.95bn, and additional sector levies such as the Financial Sector Clean-up Levy and the National Fiscal Stabilisation Levy, which jointly added N7.2bn. The group also paid N4.26bn to the National Information Technology Development Fund and N1.06bn to the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure.
