KIB profit jumps 30% to 26.6 million dinars in nine months

Summary

• Kuwait International Bank reported 26.6 million dinars in nine-month net profit, up 30% year-on-year.
• Third-quarter profit alone rose about 62% to roughly 9 million dinars.
• Financing and total assets each grew 8%, outpacing analyst expectations for Kuwaiti banks.

The latest

Net profit attributable to shareholders at Kuwait International Bank reached 26.6 million dinars for the nine months ended 30 September 2026, a 30% increase from 20.4 million dinars a year earlier, according to the bank's announcement as carried by Al-Rai and Al-Anba. The third quarter carried the sharpest gain, with profit of roughly 9 million dinars, up about 62%.

Details

• The headline number: KIB put nine-month net profit attributable to shareholders at 26.6 million dinars, against 20.4 million dinars in the same period of 2025, an increase of 30%. Al-Rai published the announcement on 24 October 2026, and Al-Anba carried it the following day.
• Per-share earnings: Earnings per share rose to 13.51 fils from 9.98 fils in the comparable period, a gain of roughly 35%, slightly ahead of the growth rate in headline net profit. The bank did not publish a breakdown of the drivers behind the per-share move.
• The quarter itself: Third-quarter net profit came in at about 9 million dinars, up 62% year-on-year, a far steeper rate than the 30% recorded across the full nine months. That implies the acceleration was concentrated in the most recent three-month stretch rather than spread evenly through the year.
• Balance sheet: Total assets reached 4.74 billion dinars as of 30 September 2026, growing 8% from 4.37 billion dinars. The expansion places KIB's asset base growth well above the deposit growth recorded over the same window.
• Financing portfolio: The financing portfolio climbed to 3.48 billion dinars from 3.21 billion dinars, an 8% rise equal to an additional 269 million dinars extended over the period. Financing now accounts for the bulk of the bank's total assets.
• Deposits lag: Depositor accounts rose to 3.08 billion dinars from 3.03 billion dinars, growth of just 2% — a quarter of the pace recorded in the financing book. The bank did not detail how the gap between financing and deposit growth was funded.
• Chairman's framing: Chairman Sheikh Mohammed Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah said the bank had handled recent shifts in regional markets efficiently, according to Al-Rai. He did not identify which specific regional developments he was referring to.
• Chief executive: Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Raed Bukhamseen said the results reflected "continuous work on developing a more diversified and resilient business model," as reported by Al-Rai. No targets or timeline for that diversification effort were disclosed alongside the results.
• Against the forecast: The reported growth sits far above EFG Hermes's expectation of roughly 2% third-quarter earnings growth across Kuwaiti banks, making KIB a significant outlier among mid-sized lenders in the market this reporting season.
• Also: Kuwait International Bank reported 26.6 million dinars in nine-month net profit, up 30% year-on-year.

Between the lines

The 62% third-quarter jump against 30% for the nine months points to momentum building late in the year rather than a steady climb. The 8% financing growth alongside only 2% deposit growth is the figure worth watching: a widening gap between what a bank lends and what it takes in deposits typically requires alternative funding, a detail the announcement leaves open.

What's next

Full-year 2026 results and the board's dividend recommendation are the next markers, alongside peer disclosures from other Kuwaiti lenders that will show whether KIB's outperformance against the 2% sector forecast is isolated.

Source: Al-Rai, Al-Anba