Middle East's Best Banks

As if the Covid-19 pandemic hasn’t been disorientating enough, First Abu Dhabi Bank also had to contend with change at the very top this year. André Sayegh retired in January after 21 years at the bank and was elevated to the FAB Board: he was replaced by industry veteran Hana Al Rostamani as group chief executive, the first woman to lead the bank.

As if the Covid-19 pandemic hasn’t been disorientating enough, First Abu Dhabi Bank also had to contend with change at the very top this year. André Sayegh retired in January after 21 years at the bank and was elevated to the FAB Board: he was replaced by industry veteran Hana Al Rostamani as group chief executive, the first woman to lead the bank.

One of the banks that had a good Covid-19 crisis is UAE-based Mashreq Bank.

One of the banks that had a good Covid-19 crisis is UAE-based Mashreq Bank.

Talaat Harb Pacha, the Egyptian who founded Banque Misr, remains a towering figure in the Middle Eastern economics community even today, 80 years after his death. The statue in his honour that adorns Talaat Harb Square in downtown Cairo, not far from Tahrir Square, speaks to the lasting influence of his ideas on domestic industry and development.

The UAE’s largest bank likes to sell itself as one of the world’s safest and most influential institutions. Over the last 12 months, First Abu Dhabi Bank proved this marketing campaign right by almost every metric that investors apply.

The UAE’s largest bank likes to sell itself as one of the world’s safest and most influential institutions. Over the last 12 months, First Abu Dhabi Bank proved this marketing campaign right by almost every metric that investors apply.

The pandemic didn’t knock Bahrain’s fastest-growing bank, Al Salam Bank Bahrain, off course. With chief executive Rafik Nayed in the hot seat, the bank increased its market share across all businesses, particularly customer deposits and financing facilities, in 2020.

Over the last 37 years, Bahrain Bay-based Al Baraka Islamic Bank has built a strong presence in Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Turkey. All told, it has a presence in 17 countries – with a total population of 1 billion people – and provides services through more than 700 branches.