Zenith Bank founder Jim Ovia makes $23.35 million during pandemic

In February, Zenith Bank’s Board of Directors declared a final dividend of N2.70 for 2020 on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). The news set the bank’s founder and chairman, Jim Ovia, on course to earn N9.575 billion ($23.35 million).

Last year, Zenith Bank declared an interim dividend of N0.30 for the 2020 financial year, amounting to a total payout of N3.00 per share.

Ovia holds an estimated 11.9-percent share in the bank, estimated at 3,546,199,395 (3,546 billion) units, Nairametrics reported.

The tier-1 capital bank’s founder is also its largest shareholder. He established the bank in 1990. In some quarters, Ovia is also recognized as an astute realtor after developing Civic Towers on Victoria Island in Lagos through his real estate firm, Quantum Luxury Properties.

Zenith Bank provides banking and financial services to corporate and individual clients. The bank is one of the FUGAZ* in Nigeria’s banking sector.

The FUGAZ are considered too big to fail, serving as a benchmark for quantifying the impact of fiscal and economic policies on the banking industry.

The FUGAZ record more than 60 percent of the profits in the banking sector. Zenith announced a profit of N50.5 billion for Q1 2020after tax. As of May 12, 2020, the bank was worth $1.2 billion, Forbes reported.

FUGAZ is an acronym for five tier-1 capital banks in Nigeria that are widely regarded as too big to go bankrupt. They include First Bank of Nigeria Plc (FBN), United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), Guaranteed Trust Bank (GTB), Access Bank Plc and Zenith Bank.