African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) delivered strong financial performance in the first quarter ended March 31, with net income rising by 21 per cent year-on-year to $215 million.

This was driven by a 4.53 per cent growth in net interest income to $411.2 million. Afreximbank indicated that this was supported by growth in interest earning assets, complemented by effective management of borrowing costs.

This helped the Bank to cushion the marginal decline in total interest income due to softening benchmark rates. Total interest income for the Group slightly dipped from $721.8 million in March 2024 to $715.9 million in March 2025.

Interest expenses fell from $328.2 million to $310.3 million. This contributed significantly to the net interest gain.

The Group reported a modest increase in net fee and commission income, growing to $26.5 million in March 2025 from $27.0 million in March 2024, reflecting a stable contribution from core banking activities.

Other operating income saw a significant jump to $36.5 million, up from $3 million, supporting the bottom line.

"Our QI 2025 results, which were in line with expectations, reflected a strong and resilient financial performance, notwithstanding continued macroeconomic challenges,” Denys Denya, Afreximbank’s Senior Executive Vice President said in a press statement.

"With solid profitability growth, a strengthened liquidity position, and a well-capitalised balance sheet, the Group is firmly positioned to continue playing a pivotal role in advancing the aspirations of Africa and the Caribbean for economic transformation and sustainable development,” he added.

Afreximbank’s total assets and contingent liabilities increased by 6.4 per cent, reaching $42.7 billion in the period under review.

On-balance sheet assets grew by 4.85 per cent to $37.0 billion, driven primarily by a 58 per cent surge in cash balances to $7.4 billion, while off-balance sheet assets i.e., letters of credit and guarantee volumes increased by a 19 per cent to reach $5.7 billion.

Net loans and advances closed Q1 at $27.8 billion, down from $29 billion. This, the Group said, reflects early repayments from certain customers on account of improved foreign currency balances position of some sovereign borrowers.

The loan asset quality remained strong, with the non-performing loans (NPL) ratio at 2.44 per cent, a modest increase from 2.33 per cent - well below the Bank’s strategic NPL ceiling of 4 per cent.

Operating expenses rose by 23 per cent to reach $75.4 million, with Afreximbank attributing the change to inflationary pressures and growing personnel costs. Despite this, the Group maintained a cost-to-income ratio of 16 per cent, slightly below its target range of 17-30 per cent.

The Group’s liquidity profile strengthened considerably, with liquid assets now comprising 20 per cent of total assets, up from 13 per cent. This higher liquidity position was a result of successful fund-raising, coupled with loan repayments received during the quarter.

Shareholders’ funds increased by 3.4 per cent, reaching $7.5 billion, driven by strong internally generated capital of $215.4 million in addition to new equity investments under the second General Capital Increase (GCI II) programme.