Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) Nigeria Limited has completed a N16 billion equity capital injection, significantly boosting its core capital ratio for the 2024 financial year.
Despite the capital improvement, the bank recorded its first non-performing loan (NPL) in over a decade due to delayed interest payments from a key obligor, resulting in an NPL ratio of 1.4% as of December 31, 2024. However, the credit loss ratio remained below 1%, indicating strong overall asset quality management.
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The bank’s exposure to large borrowers remained high, with the top 20 obligors accounting for 98.6% of total gross loans at the end of the year. Sector-wise, the manufacturing and transport/communications sectors dominated the loan book, jointly representing 75.6%.
Foreign currency loans dropped sharply to 13.6% of the total loan portfolio in 2024, down from 44.8% in 2023, as the bank focused on repayments and reduced new FCY lending in response to market conditions.
In line with the prevailing high-interest rate environment and reliance on institutional funding, RMB Nigeria’s average cost of funds rose to 7.3% in 2024 from 5.0% in 2023.
Customer deposits continued to be the primary source of funding, representing 80.8% of the bank’s funding base as of December 31, 2024. These deposits mainly consisted of wholesale funds from corporate entities and financial institutions, making them relatively price-sensitive.
RMB Nigeria retained a strong position within the country’s merchant banking space, accounting for 23.6% of the segment’s total assets, 25.9% of total loans, and 12.6% of customer deposits at the close of the financial year.
The bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of FirstRand Group Limited, one of Africa’s largest financial services groups, with total assets valued at $109.1 billion as of December 31, 2024.
