Middle East's Best Banks
LATEST ARTICLES
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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.
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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.
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One of the banks that had a good Covid-19 crisis is UAE-based Mashreq Bank.
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One of the banks that had a good Covid-19 crisis is UAE-based Mashreq Bank.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Pandemic or no, Emirates NBD and its chief executive, Shayne Nelson, had plenty to celebrate this year, making it Asiamoney’s best domestic bank for Dubai and best corporate and investment bank.
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Pandemic or no, Emirates NBD and its chief executive, Shayne Nelson, had plenty to celebrate this year, making it Asiamoney’s best domestic bank for Dubai and best corporate and investment bank.
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Commercial Bank of Dubai wins in both the SME and CSR categories, partly on the strength of its digitalization push.
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Commercial Bank of Dubai wins in both the SME and CSR categories, partly on the strength of its digitalization push.
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The sixth year of ABK-Egypt Bank’s existence is proving to be its most transformative, thanks to a digitalization push that is turning heads.
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Arab Bank, which won Asiamoney’s best bank honours last year, spent the second half of 2020 and the first half of 2021 reminding clients why it is deserving of that award, plus more, this year.
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Arab Bank, which won Asiamoney’s best bank honours last year, spent the second half of 2020 and the first half of 2021 reminding clients why it is deserving of that award, plus more, this year.
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Arab Bank, which won Asiamoney’s best bank honours last year, spent the second half of 2020 and the first half of 2021 reminding clients why it is deserving of that award, plus more, this year.
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Kuwait Finance House helped start quite a trend when it opened its doors in 1977 as only the second Islamic bank in the world. There has been no looking back since for the Kuwaiti firm.
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Kuwait International Bank, under its CEO Raed Jawad Bukhamseen, makes a credible case about being an institution that welcomes disruption from the inside out – and is winner of Asiamoney’s best digital bank for Kuwait this year.
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Kuwait International Bank, under its CEO Raed Jawad Bukhamseen, makes a credible case about being an institution that welcomes disruption from the inside out – and is winner of Asiamoney’s best digital bank for Kuwait this year.
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With more than 27,000 employees and a footprint in 31 countries across continents, there are few questions about the scale and ambition of Qatar’s largest bank. That was further cemented over the last 18 months of global turmoil, when CEO Abdulla Mubarak Al Khalifa’s team proved nothing short of impressive.
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You could say Qatar First Bank has a thing for America. In May, QFB said it acquired its seventh real estate investment in the US, part of a strategy to increase its global footprint and exposure to the West.
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The country’s first Islamic institution, now in its 39th year, could make a credible run at best Qatari bank. While it might lack the overall scale to dominate the market, QIB continues to impress as it helps to diversify an economy long dependent on a handful of corporate giants. For that, it is Asiamoney’s choice for best bank for SMEs in Qatar for 2021.
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Commercial Bank of Qatar’s customers probably barely noticed that all the bank’s branches were shut for a time in 2020: that’s a sign of the lender’s pre-pandemic success in convincing a critical mass to bank digitally.
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Two years on, Riyadh’s financial circles are still in a whirl over the Saudi British Bank joining forces with Alawwal Bank. The combination did more than just create the third-largest lender in Saudi Arabia: It raised stress levels across the region.
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Saudi National Bank is both a new player on the regional scene and a well-worn veteran. SNB is the result of a recent merger between National Commercial Bank and Samba Financial Group, or Saudi Arabia’s biggest financial institution and a genuine regional powerhouse.
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Before the coronavirus pandemic hit the Middle East, Riyad Bank was regarded by many as the go-to lender for SME owners. Earlier this year, though, the Saudi Arabian government essentially made that role official.