RAKBank profit jumps 21% to Dh2.5 billion on lending growth

Summary

• RAKBank reported Dh2.5 billion in nine-month post-tax profit for 2026, up 21.3% year-on-year.
• Total assets rose 21% to Dh120.2 billion as customer deposits climbed to Dh79.6 billion.
• Growth at a retail and SME-focused lender points to resilient domestic demand in the UAE.

The latest

Nine-month post-tax profit at National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah reached Dh2.5 billion, a 21.3% annual increase, the lender announced on Thursday, 22 October 2026. Total assets expanded 21% to Dh120.2 billion over the same period. The bank also booked a Dh473 million gain from the sale of its merchant payment acquiring business.

Details

• The headline number: RAKBank said post-tax profit for the first nine months of 2026 came in at Dh2.5 billion, equivalent to roughly $680 million, against a 21.3% rise on the same period a year earlier. The bank disclosed the figure in its results announcement on 22 October.
• Balance sheet: Total assets grew 21% year-on-year to Dh120.2 billion, according to the bank. Customer deposits rose at the same pace, up 21% to Dh79.6 billion, indicating the asset expansion was funded largely by deposit inflows rather than wholesale borrowing.
• Deposit mix: Current and savings account balances increased 11% to Dh48.3 billion, the bank said. CASA deposits are the cheapest form of funding for a lender, and at that level they cover around 61% of RAKBank's total customer deposit base.
• One-off gain: The results include a Dh473 million gain from the disposal of the bank's merchant payment acquiring business, according to the announcement. The figure is material against the nine-month profit total, accounting for close to a fifth of reported earnings. The buyer was not named.
• SME franchise: RAKBank added 12,000 small and medium-sized enterprises to its customer base during the period, the bank said. SME banking has been a core segment for the Ras Al Khaimah-based lender, which is more weighted toward retail and small-business clients than the UAE's largest banks.
• New lending: The bank extended Dh4.2 billion in new financing over the nine months, according to the results. Lending growth was cited by the bank as a principal driver of the profit increase, alongside the payments business sale.
• Capital and returns: The capital adequacy ratio stood at 18.4% and return on equity at 23.3%, the bank reported. Both figures sit well above typical regulatory minimums and regional peer averages, giving the lender headroom for further balance sheet expansion.
• What was not given: The bank did not break out third-quarter earnings separately from the nine-month total, nor did it publish guidance for the full year or detail the impact of corporate tax on the period's bottom line.

Background

RAKBank is listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and is majority-owned by the Government of Ras Al Khaimah. Its business model leans heavily on retail customers and small and medium-sized enterprises rather than large corporate and sovereign lending.

Between the lines

Stripping out the Dh473 million payments disposal, underlying profit growth is materially slower than the headline 21.3%. The more durable signal is on the balance sheet: a 21% rise in both assets and deposits, 12,000 new SME clients and Dh4.2 billion in fresh financing point to demand holding up among UAE households and small businesses — the segments most exposed to any domestic slowdown.

What's next

Full-year 2026 results and the board's dividend recommendation are the next disclosures to watch, along with whether fourth-quarter earnings hold up once the one-off payments gain drops out of the comparison.

Source: Khaleej Times; Al Khaleej