Wema Bank is targetting power, blue economy and mining investments to drive growth.
NewsOnline Nigeria reports that Wema Bank Plc has announced plans to expand into the power sector, blue economy, and mining as part of a broader strategy to diversify its asset base and enhance long-term shareholder value.
The disclosure was made during the bank’s FY 2025 analyst and investor conference call led by its Managing Director and CEO, Moruf Oseni, alongside senior executives.
Speaking on capital deployment following the bank’s strengthened financial position, Chief Risk Officer Sylvanus Eneche said the institution would adopt a cautious and strategic approach.
“With significant capital that has come in now, we need to deploy; however, we are selective in the kind of assets we invest in, being risk aware,” Eneche stated.
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He revealed that the bank is actively exploring opportunities in the power sector, as well as the blue economy; including marine-related businesses and mining, positioning itself to tap into emerging growth areas.
Wema Bank is also considering partnerships with larger, top-tier counterparties it has not previously engaged, with a focus on maintaining strong asset quality through carefully structured exposures.
“We are looking at larger A-tier players we have not engaged before, and we are set to deploy capital to them in a risk-aware manner, leveraging the opportunities,” he added.
On the bank’s ambition to attain tier-one status, Oseni expressed confidence in its growth trajectory, noting that both organic expansion and operational scaling would drive progress.
“To pole vault ourselves into tier one, we will grow organically and efficiently, and we are also looking for opportunities to scale up operations within the bank,” he said.
He added that achieving tier-one status within two to three years is realistic if current strategies deliver as expected, while emphasizing the bank’s broader long-term vision.
Wema Bank has recorded strong growth in recent years, particularly in deposit mobilisation, with customer deposits rising from N804 billion in 2020 to N3.2 trillion in 2025.
For the 2025 financial year, the bank reported a profit before tax of N221.8 billion, reflecting a 116.44 percent increase from N102.5 billion in 2024.
The performance was largely driven by interest income, which grew to N576 billion from N354.6 billion. Loans and advances contributed 60.4 percent of interest income, while investment securities accounted for 35.5 percent.
Non-interest income also supported earnings, with net gains on fair value investment securities at N993.2 million, fee and commission income rising to N75.5 billion from N55.5 billion, and trading income contributing N8.3 billion.
The planned sectoral expansion signals Wema Bank’s intent to strengthen its market position while tapping into high-growth industries across Nigeria’s evolving economic landscape.
