Suez Canal Bank, Housing & Development Bank, and ADCB Lead the Fastest-Growing Banks in Corporate Direct Lending over the Last Three Years

Suez Canal Bank Tops Fastest-Growing Banks in Corporate Direct Lending over the Last Three Years, Housing & Development Bank Follows

The private sector dominates, with eight private banks ranking among the top ten fastest-growing banks, compared to only two public banks.

Arab banking groups captured half of the seats on the list of the top ten fastest-growing banks.

Meanwhile, the National Bank of Egypt maintained its leadership in terms of absolute increase in portfolio value over the past three years.

The First Bank ranking of the fastest-growing banks in corporate direct lending over the last three years revealed that Suez Canal Bank topped the list, posting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 71.3%, with its portfolio reaching EGP 19.75 billion by end-2024, compared to EGP 3.93 billion by end-2021.

Housing & Development Bank ranked second with a growth rate of 52.99% over the same period, followed by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank – Egypt (ADCB) at 51.5%.

The ranking covered 25 banks operating in the Egyptian banking sector for which financial data were available over the past three years. Notably, FABMISR and ABC recorded exceptionally high growth rates of 143.3% and 106.9%, respectively, driven by acquisition-related effects. Both banks were excluded from the ranking to ensure comparability.

The ranking confirmed the outperformance of private-sector banks, which secured eight out of the top ten positions among the fastest-growing banks in corporate direct lending over the last three years, versus only two positions for public-sector banks.

The private banks included in the top ten list during the period under review were: Suez Canal Bank, Housing & Development Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank – Egypt, BANK NXT, Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, Attijariwafa Bank, CIB, National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, and Emirates NBD.

The two positions held by public-sector banks went to Housing & Development Bank, which ranked second, and Banque du Caire, which ranked fourth among the fastest-growing banks in corporate direct lending over the past three years.

Data also highlighted the strong performance of Arab banking groups operating in Egypt, which captured half of the seats on the top ten list. These banks include Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank – Egypt, Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, Attijariwafa Bank, National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, and Emirates NBD.

On the other hand, the National Bank of Egypt recorded the largest portfolio size and the highest absolute increase over the period under review, despite not featuring among the top ten fastest-growing banks. Its corporate direct lending portfolio rose to EGP 1.04 trillion by end-2024, up from EGP 478.60 billion by end-2021, representing a growth rate of 29.6% and a total increase of EGP 563.28 billion.

Conversely, Arab International Banking Company (saib) recorded the lowest growth rate in corporate direct lending, with a modest increase of 7.1% over the past three years.

Despite this, the bank regained strong momentum during the current year, as reflected in a 58.3% surge in its corporate direct lending portfolio during the first nine months of 2025, reaching EGP 11.79 billion by end-September, compared to EGP 7.45 billion by end-2024. This performance placed saib in second place on First Bank’s ranking of the fastest-growing banks listed on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) in corporate direct lending during the first nine months of 2025.