FNB Eswatini has experienced significant growth in assets and lending under the leadership of Thokozani Dlamini, who took over as CEO on December 31, 2024. The bank's assets have increased to E12.07 billion, customer deposits to E8.12 billion, and gross lending to E5.84 billion. This growth has been driven by a substantial increase in corporate and commercial lending, as well as a notable expansion in agricultural advances.
During Dlamini's first full financial year, gross lending jumped 21%, customer deposits rose about 23%, and operating income increased by roughly E99 million to E1.20 billion. However, the bank's pre-tax profit fell from E364.7 million in 2024 to E335.7 million in 2026. This decline in profitability is attributed to a significant increase in operating and administration expenses, which rose by approximately E105 million to E814.5 million.
The increase in operating costs is largely due to investments in people, infrastructure, and payment platforms. The bank has attributed part of the higher expenditure to these investments, including changes associated with Common Monetary Area low-value electronic payments and the first phase of the Eswatini Payment Switch. Management expects some of these costs to normalise as investments mature.
FNB's growth has been driven by a substantial increase in lending, particularly in the corporate and commercial sectors. Agricultural advances increased by E407.2 million in a single year, from E1.217 billion in 2024 to E1.625 billion in 2025. The bank's exposure to agriculture has grown significantly, from E696.6 million three years earlier.
Despite the growth in lending and assets, FNB's returns have declined. Return on assets has fallen from 3% in 2024 to 2.1% in 2026, while return on equity has declined from above 21% to 17%. This means that every E100 of assets on FNB's books is producing less profit than it did two years ago.
The bank's operating and administration expenses have climbed from E598.9 million in 2024 to E814.5 million in 2026, an increase of about 36%. The increase has come in two sizeable jumps, with the first occurring during the 2025 financial year, when expenses rose E110.4 million, or 18.4%, to E709.4 million.
FNB's board has warned that regulatory changes to the way payments are processed across the industry would require "substantial" capital investment. The bank has introduced an operational optimisation programme involving automation and process re-engineering to address the rising costs. It remains to be seen when the additional scale and investment will begin producing bigger returns.
Key points
- FNB Eswatini's pre-tax profit has declined to E335.7 million in 2026 despite significant growth in assets and lending.
- The bank's operating and administration expenses have increased by about 36% over the past two years.
- FNB's return on assets has fallen from 3% in 2024 to 2.1% in 2026.
