Emirates NBD reported a 12% increase in income to AED 23.9 billion for the first half of 2025, driven by strong loan growth, regional expansion, and new product offerings. Lending rose by AED 41 billion, or 8%, during this period, with significant demand from both the UAE and international markets. Deposits also increased by AED 70 billion, including a record AED 48 billion rise in low-cost Current and Savings Account balances.
Operating profit grew by 9%, as the momentum in loans and deposits helped offset earlier interest rate cuts. Emirates Islamic, part of the group, achieved a record profit of AED 1.9 billion in the first half of the year.
The bank’s wealth management division saw assets under management reach USD 50 billion, reflecting its focus on serving an increasingly affluent regional population. Investments in digital technology and artificial intelligence contributed to income growth that more than compensated for lower interest rates.
Other highlights include a market share of 35% in UAE credit card spending and over AED 100 billion processed through credit and debit cards in the first half of the year. The ‘SHARE’ credit card, launched with Majid Al Futtaim Group, became Emirates NBD’s fastest card to reach 10,000 issued units.
International operations accounted for nearly half of the loan growth. In Saudi Arabia, network expansion led to a notable increase in lending activity. New products such as structured credit and investment solutions have attracted both local and international clients.
Digital banking remains central to Emirates NBD’s strategy; more than 93% of new current accounts were opened via mobile app or assisted tablet services. The bank also launched crypto trading through Liv X in partnership with Aquanow and Zodia Custody and established several fintech collaborations aimed at enhancing payment solutions and beneficiary validation.
Sustainability initiatives were recognized with Emirates NBD receiving the highest ESG rating among regional banks from S&P Global. It was also the first bank in MENA to publish an ISSB report and holds the most LEED Platinum certified branches globally.
Hesham Abdulla Al Qassim, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, said:
“Emirates NBD’s income surged 12% to AED 23.9 billion in the first half of 2025 on strong loan growth, regional expansion and an innovative product offering.
Lending grew by an excellent AED 41 billion in the first half of 2025, and we now expect double digit loan growth for the full year as consumer momentum and business confidence continues.
Emirates Islamic’s profit rose to a record AED 1.9 billion, with very strong Customer financing growth of 13% in the first half of 2025, highlighting its position as an Islamic banking powerhouse in the UAE.
The Group commands a 35% market share of UAE credit card spend as we processed more than AED 100 billion credit and debit card spend in the first half of 2025.
We successfully launched the ‘SHARE’ credit card, cobranded with the Majid Al Futtaim Group, which became the Group’s fastest ever card to reach 10,000 in issue.”
Shayne Nelson, Group Chief Executive Officer said:
“Emirates NBD delivered a 9% yoy increase in operating profit, propelled by excellent loan growth and our ability to attract and retain low-cost deposits.
The Group’s ability to substantially grow income is a direct benefit of the strategic investment in our regional footprint, Digital and GenAI, helping to offset the impact of lower interest rates.
Innovative products have successfully harnessed key growth areas, including Private Banking, Wealth Management, Escrow, regional corporate growth and investment banking.
We have worked hard to nurture the UAE’s leading deposit franchise in low-cost Current Accounts and Savings Accounts, which accounted for AED 48 billion of the AED 70 billion growth in deposits in the first half of 2025.
We actively use big-data analytics for deep data mining, expanding new merchant acquiring opportunities and have over 50 active Advanced Analytics use cases, positioning Emirates NBD as a data-first bank.”
Patrick Sullivan, Group Chief Financial Officer said:
“Profit before tax was AED 15.4 billion despite nearly AED 2 billion lower recoveries in the first half of 2025 relative to the very strong recoveries last year.
Profit for the half year of AED 12.5 billion despite the impact of the new higher tax rate.
The continued healthy credit environment and buoyant economy delivered a net impairment credit of AED 0.3 billion, leading to a positive revision on credit metrics.
Healthy capital generation helped support extremely strong loan growth and the rock-solid balance sheet makes Emirates NBD a regional powerhouse, providing the platform for future growth.
The investment in people, network, technology and products is clearly delivering new sources of income.”
The broader economic environment supported these results: non-oil sectors remained robust due to high project spending from public- and private-sector sources along with solid private consumption levels across markets like Dubai where property transactions stayed elevated compared with last year while price increases moderated. In Saudi Arabia government investments supported ongoing non-oil sector activity; oil production is expected to rise further boosting GDP figures both there and within UAE economies; Egypt saw improvement due to better balance-of-payments conditions while Türkiye experienced easing inflation following supportive monetary policy.
