Nigerian billionaire Jim Ovia’s Zenith Bank stake loses $65.5 million in October

Nigerian billionaire Jim Ovia’s stake in Zenith Bank lost about $65.5 million in value in October as the lender’s shares fell 11.2% during a broad selloff in Nigerian banking stocks.

Zenith Bank shares closed at N119 on Oct. 30, down from N134 at the end of September, according to Nairametrics data on October sector performance on the Nigerian Exchange. The decline came in a month when the NGX Banking Index fell 10.42%, the steepest drop among the exchange’s sector gauges.

Ovia, who founded Zenith Bank in 1990, holds 5,801,238,332 shares, about 14.1% of the lender, through direct and indirect holdings. At the September close, that stake was worth about N777.4 billion ($585.4 million). At the Oct. 30 close, its value had fallen to about N690.3 billion ($519.8 million), a paper loss of roughly N87 billion in a single month.

Billionaires.Africa reported in September that Ovia’s stake gained about $144 million in the third quarter, when Zenith shares climbed from N105.05 to N134. October’s decline erased almost half of that gain.

The fall still leaves Ovia well ahead for the year. Zenith shares opened 2026 at N61.80, according to BusinessDay, which would have valued his stake at about N358.5 billion ($270 million). At N119, the shares remain up more than 90% in 2026.

The drop came right after Zenith Bank’s nine-month results, released on Oct. 30. Pre-tax profit rose 1.2% to N928.8 billion ($699.4 million) from N917.4 billion a year earlier. However, profit after tax fell 11.6% to N675.8 billion ($508.9 million) as the bank’s tax charge climbed 65.1%.

Gross earnings dropped 15% to N2.87 trillion, and interest income slipped 4.5% to N2.62 trillion. The bank also recorded a trading loss of N229.2 billion, compared with a gain of N277.7 billion a year earlier.

Lower loan-loss provisions cushioned the results. Impairment charges fell 70.5% to N230.8 billion ($173.8 million) from N782.8 billion. Net fee and commission income rose 26.6% to N256.9 billion, while operating expenses increased 17.6% to N625.6 billion.

The balance sheet kept growing. Total assets rose 10.3% to N34.39 trillion, customer deposits increased 14.5% to N27.11 trillion and loans climbed 24.2% to N11.64 trillion.

Zenith was not alone. First HoldCo dropped 25.48% in October, GTCO lost 9.09%, United Bank for Africa fell 7.59% and Access Holdings declined 5.92%. Fidelity Bank, Ecobank Transnational and Wema Bank were the only lenders to post gains.

Ovia stepped down as Zenith Bank chairman in May after decades at the helm, but remains its largest individual shareholder.

The bank proposed an interim dividend of N1.50 per share with its half-year results, setting Ovia up to collect about N8.7 billion ($6.6 million) before tax. The nine-month results did not include a further dividend.