GTCO’s HabariPay profit surges as Nigeria banks battle fintech rivals

Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO)’s payments subsidiary, HabariPay, posted sharp earnings growth in 2025, underscoring how Nigerian banks are pushing deeper into digital payments as they seek more stable fee income beyond lending.

• GTCO’s payments subsidiary HabariPay is emerging as a fast-growing part of the banking group’s business.
• Profit after tax rose from $611 thousand (N837 million) in 2022 to $7.1 million(N9.7 billion) in 2025, driven by higher transaction volumes and merchant growth.
• The unit highlights how Nigerian banks are expanding into fintech to defend market share from OPay, Moniepoint and Flutterwave.
• Analysts say payments businesses could become a more stable earnings source as lending and FX gains fluctuate.

The performance also highlights intensifying competition between traditional lenders and fintech firms such as OPay, Moniepoint, Flutterwave and Paystack, which have expanded rapidly in consumer payments and everyday banking services.

HabariPay, launched by GTCO as a digital payments and commerce business, focuses on merchant acquisition, payment gateways, point-of-sale services, wallet solutions and tools for small and medium-sized businesses.

Through Squad, its flagship platform, the company enables merchants to accept payments online and in-store, process transfers and manage collections.

Its competitive edge is evident in the growing clientele it has been able to sign up and the crop of businesses it has won over, most of which are switching from cash to digital payments.

Nigeria has become one of Africa’s busiest payments markets, driven by rising instant transfers, mobile banking adoption, smartphone penetration and regulatory efforts to deepen financial inclusion.

That has created new revenue opportunities for banks, fintech companies and telecom-linked operators competing for transaction flows and customer relationships.

GTCO’s latest annual report showed HabariPay’s profit after tax rose to $7.1 million(N9.7 billion) in 2025 from $611 thousand (N837 million) in 2022.

Profit after tax stood at $1.6 milliom(N2.24 billion) in 2023 and $2.8 milliom (N3.90 billion) in 2024 before accelerating in 2025.

Profit before tax also rose from $690 thousand (N944.87 million) in 2022 to $1.7 million (N2.33 billion) in 2023, $3.1 million (N4.18 billion) in 2024 and $7.1 million (N9.74 billion) in 2025.

Operating income increased from $1.1 million (N1.54 billion) in 2022 to $3.5 million (N4.83 billion) in 2023, $4.2 million (N5.76 billion) in 2024 and $9.5 million (N12.99 billion) in 2025, pointing to higher transaction volumes and a broader merchant base.

Matilda Adefalujo, fixed income analyst at Meristem Stockbrokers, said Nigerian banks had accelerated investment in fintech subsidiaries focused on payments and digital transaction services.

“Notable examples include GTCO’s HabariPay and AccessCorp’s Hydrogen,” she said. “This strategic push reflects the growing importance of payments as a key non-interest revenue driver, particularly through fees and commission income.”

She said HabariPay’s financial performance had been notable, even if its contribution to GTCO’s overall earnings remained modest.

“Operating income expanded significantly from NGN1.54 billion in 2022 to NGN12.99 billion in 2025, while profit after tax rose from NGN836.53 million to NGN9.74 billion over the same period, driven by rising transaction volumes,” Adefalujo said.

She added that HabariPay had gained traction through Squad, which offers virtual accounts, POS services and payment links.

“Since launch, GTCO has strategically positioned HabariPay as a credible player within Nigeria’s highly competitive fintech landscape, where it competes with established operators such as Paystack, Flutterwave, Moniepoint and OPay,” she said.

Despite the rapid growth, HabariPay remains small relative to GTCO’s core banking business.

GTCO reported profit after tax of $123 million (N169.68 billion) in 2022,$394 million (N539.66 billion) in 2023, $730 million (N1.02 trillion) in 2024 and dipped $632 million (N866.11 billion) in 2025.

Based on those figures, HabariPay contributed roughly 0.5% of group profit in 2022, 0.4% in 2023, 0.4% in 2024 and 1.1% in 2025.

That suggests the unit is not yet a major earnings pillar, though it could become strategically more important as GTCO seeks to diversify revenue sources.

Nigerian lenders benefited in recent years from high interest rates and foreign-exchange revaluation gains following currency reforms, but those earnings drivers can be volatile.

Payments income, by contrast, is tied more closely to transaction activity, merchant growth and the steady digitisation of commerce, making it a more recurring source of fee income.

Still, the market remains fiercely competitive. Independent fintech firms often move faster, spend heavily on customer acquisition and compete aggressively on pricing and user experience.

Adefalujo said digital-first platforms had reshaped Nigeria’s consumer banking market through convenience, speed and lower operating costs.

“As such, we continue to view players such as Moniepoint and OPay as key competitive threats within the consumer banking and payments space,” she said.

For GTCO, HabariPay offers exposure to one of the fastest-growing segments of financial services. Whether it becomes a meaningful contributor to group earnings, however, will depend on how successfully it scales in a crowded market while protecting margins.