ADCB Q3 profit up 15% as nine-month earnings hit AED10.3bn

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank reported a 15% rise in third-quarter net profit to AED3.559bn ($969m) on Thursday, lifting nine-month earnings to a record AED10.296bn ($2.8bn), up 27% on a year earlier.

That takes the ADCB Q3 profit streak to 21 quarters of growth in a row, the bank said in a statement. Before tax, the three months to 30 September produced AED4.063bn ($1.1bn), a 28% gain, and the nine-month figure of AED11.67bn ($3.18bn) was also 28% higher.

Operating income over nine months came to AED18.306bn ($4.98bn), 10% more than a year ago. Fees and trading did much of the work: non-interest income was up 21% at AED6.964bn ($1.9bn), or 38% of the total.

Lending surge drives ADCB Q3 profit

The balance sheet expanded sharply over the period. Total assets reached AED890bn ($242bn) at the end of September, up 20% from a year earlier and 15% since the start of 2026.

Net customer loans stood at AED469bn ($128bn), an increase of 18% year on year. ADCB added AED66bn ($18bn) of net lending in the first nine months, including AED24bn ($6.5bn) in the third quarter alone, equivalent to 5% growth on the previous quarter.

Customer deposits rose 16% year on year to AED558bn ($152bn), with AED32bn ($8.7bn) added during the quarter. The lending book has moved well beyond its half-year level, when net loans stood at AED444.6bn, according to the bank’s second-quarter release.

Asset quality improves as costs fall

Credit quality strengthened alongside the expansion. The cost of risk fell to 36 basis points for the nine months, from 73 basis points a year earlier, while the non-performing loan ratio dropped to 1.60%, a level the bank described as a record low.

Efficiency improved too. The cost-to-income ratio narrowed by 40 basis points to 27.3%, and return on average equity after tax reached 16.2%, up 144 basis points. ADCB said continued investment in technology and artificial intelligence was lifting productivity and customer experience.

The common equity tier 1 ratio stood at 13.79% at the end of September, compared with 13.66% at the end of June, and the liquidity coverage ratio was 116.8%. Both sit comfortably above regulatory minimums and the bank’s own targets.

Five-year strategy remains on track

Ala’a Eraiqat, Group Chief Executive Officer of ADCB, said the bank had “maintained its accelerated growth trajectory during the third quarter”, according to Gulf News. He credited the performance to ADCB’s market position, business model and disciplined execution of its strategic priorities.

ADCB is in the second year of a five-year strategy launched in early 2025. The plan targets a doubling of net profit to AED20bn ($5.4bn), a return on equity above 15%, a CET1 ratio above 12% and a cost of risk below 60 basis points. It also commits to progressive dividend increases totalling more than AED25bn ($6.8bn) over the period.

The results land in a crowded week for Gulf bank earnings. Emirates NBD reported record nine-month income, while Dubai Islamic Bank posted a 3% fall in third-quarter net profit to AED1.8bn ($490m). In Doha, QIB lifted nine-month profit 2% to QAR3.5bn.

For investors, the ADCB Q3 profit figures suggest UAE lenders have so far absorbed the economic shock of the regional conflict. The IMF this week projected a 3.9% contraction in the UAE economy for 2026, yet ADCB said in July that it still saw a healthy pipeline across infrastructure, logistics, transport, tourism, energy and AI.

Attention now turns to the final quarter and whether the bank will revise its full-year guidance after loan growth of 16% in nine months. With the cost of risk running at roughly half the strategy ceiling, ADCB has room to keep lending while protecting returns, provided asset quality holds through the remainder of the year. More regional banking coverage is available in our News section.

The full results announcement was reported by Gulf News on 22 October.