National Bank Earns 481.7 Million Dinars in 9 Months

- Hamad Al-Baher:

- The results reflect the robustness of the group’s business model and its ability to deliver strong performance under various conditions.

- “Al-Watani” continues to lead, supported by a strong balance sheet, comfortable liquidity, and solid asset quality.

- Issam Al-Saqer:

- Financial indicators confirm our ability to achieve balanced and sustainable growth despite regional and global challenges.

- “Al-Watani” relies on a strong standing that positions it to achieve further accomplishments and reinforce its leadership locally.

National Bank of Kuwait announced that it recorded net profits of 481.7 million Kuwaiti dinars ($1.6 billion) for the first nine months of 2026, compared with 467.4 million dinars ($1.5 billion) in the same period of 2025, representing a 3.1 percent increase.

Total assets rose by 4.5 percent year-on-year as of the end of September 2026 to reach 46.9 billion dinars. Total loans and advances grew by 8.2 percent to 28.2 billion dinars, while customer deposits increased by 13.5 percent to 27.9 billion dinars. Total shareholders’ equity stood at 4.6 billion dinars, up 5.1 percent.

Commenting on these results, Hamad Al-Baher, Chairman of the “Al-Watani” Group, said: “The results for the first nine months of 2026 reflect the resilience of the group’s business model and its ability to deliver strong and sustainable performance across various economic conditions, underpinned by diversified income sources, a strong financial position, and strategic flexibility.” He added that the bank continued to strengthen its position as a leading financial institution in the region during the third quarter, supported by a robust balance sheet, high capital ratios, comfortable liquidity levels, and solid asset quality. He emphasized the bank’s ongoing commitment to embedding sustainability standards across all “Al-Watani” operations and investment decisions, thereby supporting sustainable growth and creating long-term value for shareholders.

Al-Baher reaffirmed the bank’s continued support for national and community initiatives, noting “Al-Watani’s” recent contribution of $5 million to the Kuwait Emergency Response Fund, as well as providing 1.3 million dinars to develop facilities at Kuwait International Airport, and 1 million dinars for the restoration and rehabilitation of land border crossings in Abdali, Salwa, and Nuwaybisah.

He also highlighted “Al-Watani’s” continued leadership in corporate social responsibility, pointing to its receipt of the “Best Bank in the Middle East for Corporate Social Responsibility 2026” award at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence, in recognition of its initiatives in various sectors including health, education, and sports.

For his part, Essam Al-Saqer, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Al-Watani Group, stated: “The financial indicators recorded by the Group during the nine months ended September 30, 2026, confirm its ability to achieve balanced and sustainable growth despite the challenges facing the regional and global business environment.” Al-Saqer revealed that net operating revenues grew by 3.8 percent year-on-year to reach KD 1 billion, supported by momentum in core banking activities and the positive contribution of the Group’s affiliated activities and sectors to revenue generation, reflecting the success of the Bank’s strategy based on diversifying income sources and leveraging available opportunities in the markets it operates in. He added that external operations continued to play a key role in diversifying the Group’s performance, benefiting from Al-Watani’s broad geographic presence in regional and global markets, which enhanced income source diversification and strengthened business resilience in the face of economic changes. Additionally, Boubyan Bank, the Group’s Islamic banking arm, continued to make a strong contribution to revenue and profitability growth, supported by its leading position in the Islamic banking sector. Al-Saqer clarified that the Group made tangible progress in implementing its strategy aimed at enhancing geographic diversification and expanding revenue sources, leveraging the integration between its conventional and Islamic banking activities and wealth management operations. He noted that, as part of Al-Watani’s commitment to strengthening its regional and international presence, the Bank recently opened a new branch at the Qatar Financial Centre, supporting expansion plans and enhancing customer service in the Qatari market.

In the field of wealth management, Al-Saqer stated: “Al-Watani Wealth Group continued to consolidate its position as one of the leading specialized wealth management entities in the region, supported by business growth and rising demand for specialized investment and advisory solutions, alongside the continuous development of its products and services to meet customer needs and aspirations in a changing investment environment.”

Al-Saqer emphasized that diversification remains a fundamental pillar of Al-Watani’s strategy, leveraging the integration across various activities, sectors, and markets in which it operates, thereby enhancing the resilience of its business model and its ability to deliver sustainable value to shareholders.

He noted that Al-Watani continued to demonstrate its superiority in digital banking services during the third quarter by launching innovative solutions that enhance customer experience and improve operational efficiency. He explained that, as part of its digital transformation strategy, the Bank expanded the scope of its integrated digital services to include more personal banking products, launching the first fully digital loan in Kuwait, in addition to enabling the opening of children’s accounts and completing all credit card application procedures digitally, with cards being directly added to digital wallets via the Al-Watani Mobile app.

He clarified that these initiatives align with Al-Watani’s vision to redesign the customer journey and deliver a smoother, more convenient banking experience, reinforcing its position as a leading financial institution in digital innovation. He confirmed that Al-Watani made significant progress in implementing its sustainability and sustainable finance objectives, noting that the Group focuses on delivering long-term value to stakeholders by developing responsible financing solutions and enhancing the positive impact of its operations on the economy and society.

Regarding the operating environment in Kuwait, Al-Saqqar said that economic activity has improved in recent periods, supported by the gradual recovery of oil production and progress in implementing the development agenda. He added that project activity maintained its momentum, with the total value of awarded projects reaching approximately 3 billion dinars in the first nine months of 2026, alongside attracting international investments to the infrastructure sector in the third quarter, reflecting investors’ confidence in the Kuwaiti economy and strengthening the outlook for investment activity in the coming period. Al-Saqqar clarified that Kuwait has made notable progress in economic and legislative reforms recently, including the issuance of the Mortgage Finance Law, noting that its implementation will contribute to supporting the growth of the banking sector and stimulating economic activity, particularly in sectors linked to the housing and real estate development markets.

He said: “At National Bank, we rely on a solid capital base and strong liquidity levels that enable us to capitalize on upcoming growth opportunities and reinforce our leadership in the local market. Our strong relationships with the public and private sectors continue to solidify our position at the forefront of financial institutions supporting Kuwait’s development plans.”

During the third quarter of 2026, National Bank Group continued to strengthen its international presence and won several prestigious awards that reflected the success of its strategy in innovation, digital transformation, and wealth management. The bank was named Best Bank in Kuwait 2026 by Euromoney, and also won 17 awards at the Global Finance Awards for Digital Banking.

National Wealth Management continued to consolidate its leading position in the wealth management sector after winning several prestigious global awards from Euromoney.