Guaranty Trust Bank plc was incorporated in 1990 as a limited liability company authorized to provide commercial and other banking services to the Nigerian public. The bank began operations in February 1991, and has since grown to become one of the most respected and service-oriented banks in Nigeria.
In September 1996, Guaranty Trust Bank plc became a publicly traded company and won the Nigerian Stock Exchange President's Merit Award in the same year, followed by 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. In February 2002, the bank obtained a universal banking license and was appointed as a settlement bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2003.
Guaranty Trust Bank undertook its second share offering in 2004 and successfully raised over N11 billion from Nigerian investors to expand its operations and compete favorably with other global financial institutions. This development enabled the bank to meet the N25 billion minimum capital requirement for banks introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria in 2005, as part of the regulator's efforts to clean up and strengthen Nigerian banks.
After the consolidation, Guaranty Trust Bank plc made a strategic decision to move aggressively into retail banking. A major rebranding exercise followed in June 2005, which saw the bank emerge with enhanced service offerings, an aggressive expansion strategy and its vibrant orange identity.
In 2007, the bank made history by becoming the first Nigerian financial institution to launch a US$350 million Eurobond S issue and a US$750 million Global Depository Receipt (GDR) offering. The listing of the GDRs on the London Stock Exchange in July of that year made the bank the first Nigerian company and the first African bank to be listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange.
In December 2009, Guaranty Trust Bank plc successfully completed an offering of ₦13.165 billion senior unsecured non-convertible fixed rate bonds due 2014 (Series I), constituting the first tranche of the Bank's ₦200 billion debt issuance program.
In May 2011, the Bank successfully launched a US$500 million bond - the first non-sovereign benchmark bond offering from Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa), to the international community. This highly successful issue, which matures in 2016, demonstrated to the international financial community that it believes in the GTBank brand.
In 2013, the Bank issued a USD 400,000,000 Eurobond at a coupon rate of 6%; the lowest achieved by a Nigerian company in the international capital market. The Eurobond was issued under the USD 2,000,000 Global Medium Term Note Program, which is registered under both the United States of America and Rule 144A in the United Kingdom, and sold to investors in Africa, America, Asia and Europe.