First Indicator: Major banks drive Arab banking sector growth, top 10 capture 74% of asset increase

Growth rates alone do not tell the full story of expansion in the Arab banking sector, particularly when growth is measured by the absolute increase in assets.

While some mid-sized and emerging banks may record high growth rates, the much larger asset bases of major banks mean that even relatively modest percentage increases can translate into substantial gains in absolute terms, allowing them to drive sector growth and preserve their relative weight.

Data from First Bank’s ranking of the 100 largest Arab banks at end-March 2026 confirm this trend. Asset growth across the 100 banks was not evenly distributed, with the largest institutions accounting for the bulk of the increase recorded during Q1 2026.

The 10 largest Arab banks added about USD 52 billion to their assets during Q1 2026, accounting for around 74 per cent of the total increase recorded by the top 100 banks, which stood at about USD 70 billion.

As a result, total assets across the ranking rose to USD 5.05 trillion at end-March 2026 from USD 4.97 trillion at end-2025.

This performance also lifted the top 10 banks’ share of the combined assets of the 100 largest Arab banks to around 51 per cent at end-March 2026 from 50 per cent at end-2025, reflecting the continued concentration of financial strength among a limited number of major banking institutions.

Although the composition of the top 10 remained unchanged, competition within the group remained active. Q1 2026 saw limited shifts in the rankings of several banks, driven by relatively small differences in asset portfolios and the increases recorded during the period, without any new entrants or exits.

Emirates NBD climbed to third from fourth at end-2025 after adding about USD 14.20 billion to its assets, which rose to USD 331.24 billion at end-March 2026 from USD 317.04 billion at end-2025.

The bank overtook Saudi National Bank, which slipped to fourth from third after adding just USD 4.73 billion in Q1 2026, taking its assets to USD 327.34 billion at end-March from USD 322.61 billion at end-2025.

Riyad Bank also rose to ninth from 10th after adding USD 4.61 billion to its assets, which reached USD 143.11 billion at end-March 2026 from USD 138.50 billion at end-2025.

It moved ahead of Kuwait Finance House (KFH), which fell to 10th from ninth despite adding about USD 3 billion to its assets, taking the total to USD 141.87 billion at end-March 2026 from USD 138.88 billion at end-2025.

These movements reflect the relatively close asset sizes of several major banks, making their rankings more sensitive to differences in the absolute increases recorded across reporting periods.