The 1st trillion journey: Five years of QNB Egypt under Mohamed Bedeir

Translated & Edited by Aya Elsayed

QNB Egypt entered a new chapter five years ago this month when Mohamed Bedeir took over as Chief Executive Officer, marking the start of a period of accelerated business expansion and a stronger presence across Egypt’s banking market.

Over those years, QNB Egypt’s growth extended beyond the expansion of its balance sheet to encompass its various banking activities, supported by a strategy focused on broadening its customer base and expanding lending activity, alongside improving profitability and asset-quality indicators.

This reinforced its position as the largest foreign bank operating in the Egyptian market and the second-largest private-sector bank.

From EGP 354bn to EGP 1tn: QNB Egypt’s financial position strengthens under Mohamed Bedeir

Financial position expansion was one of the most prominent features of this journey, with QNB Egypt’s assets rising by around 200 per cent over the past five years, an increase of more than EGP 708bn, to reach EGP 1.06tn at end-June 2026, from EGP 354.20bn at end-2021.

This growth was supported by a sustained expansion in the deposit base, as the bank succeeded in attracting diverse customer segments and offering savings products tailored to their different needs.

Customer deposits rose to EGP 910.37bn at end-June 2026, from EGP 296.24bn at end-2021, representing growth of 207.3 per cent over the past five years and an increase of EGP 614.13bn. Deposits accounted for around 87 per cent of the total increase in the bank’s balance sheet.

The corporate segment played a pivotal role in expanding QNB Egypt’s deposit base, as the bank broadened its corporate customer base, strengthened banking relationships with major economic entities and offered advanced banking solutions and products tailored to their different needs.

As a result, corporate deposits rose to EGP 576.63bn at end-June 2026, from EGP 171.11bn at end-2021, representing growth of 237 per cent and an increase of EGP 405.52bn over the past five years. Corporate deposits accounted for around 66 per cent of the total increase in customer deposits.

The bank also expanded its presence in the retail segment by diversifying the products and banking services offered to individuals.

Retail deposits rose by around 166.7 per cent over the same period, an increase of EGP 208.61bn, to reach EGP 333.74bn at end-June 2026, from EGP 125.13bn at end-2021, reflecting the growing contribution of retail customers to the bank’s business expansion.

As its funding base expanded, the growth translated directly into greater capacity for QNB Egypt to expand lending activity. The customer loan portfolio rose by around 180.8 per cent over the past five years to EGP 518.91bn at end-June 2026, from EGP 184.79bn at end-2021.

Corporate loans remained the main driver of this expansion, supported by the bank’s growing role in financing companies and major projects.

The portfolio surged around 187.5 per cent over the period under review to EGP 426.90bn at end-June 2026, from EGP 148.49bn at end-2021, lifting its share of total loans to around 82.3 per cent from 80.4 per cent.

At the same time, the bank continued to expand its retail lending, with the retail loan portfolio rising around 153.4 per cent over the past five years to EGP 92.03bn at end-June 2026, from EGP 36.30bn at end-2021, an increase of EGP 55.70bn. This completed a pattern of parallel growth across corporate and retail lending.

Asset quality improves markedly alongside credit expansion

QNB Egypt’s expansion was not limited to growth in its loan portfolio, but was accompanied by a marked improvement in asset quality. The non-performing loan (NPL) ratio declined to 3.93 per cent at end-June 2026, from 5.43 per cent at end-2023, reflecting the bank’s ability to continue expanding credit while maintaining portfolio quality and managing risk.

The improvement was supported by a decline in the NPL ratio for the corporate loan portfolio, which accounts for the largest share of total lending, to 4.47 per cent at end-June 2026, from 6.33 per cent at end-2023.

Asset quality also improved in the retail loan portfolio, where the NPL ratio fell to 1.43 per cent at end-June 2026, from 1.87 per cent at end-2023. This reflected stronger quality across the bank’s two main loan portfolios alongside the robust growth recorded in lending over the past five years.

From balance-sheet growth to stronger profitability and efficiency

As the asset base expanded and lending activity grew, the key question remains: has QNB Egypt succeeded in translating this expansion in business scale into tangible profit growth and greater efficiency in the use of assets and capital?

On profitability, the bank recorded a significant increase in net profit, which rose by around 291 per cent to EGP 29.12bn in 2025, from EGP 7.45bn in 2021.

The growth was reflected in efficiency indicators, with Return on Average Assets (ROAA) rising to 3.38 per cent in 2025, from 2.33 per cent in 2021, while Return on Average Equity (ROAE) increased to 28.96 per cent from 17.85 per cent over the same period.

The strong performance continued into the first half of 2026, with the bank recording net profit of EGP 17.79bn, while ROAA stood at 3.60 per cent and ROAE at 30.33 per cent, reflecting sustained strength in returns alongside the expansion of its asset and capital bases.

The five years under Mohamed Bedeir’s leadership have marked a significant transformation in the scale and scope of QNB Egypt’s operations.

Growth has extended beyond balance-sheet expansion to encompass the bank’s core business lines, delivering stronger returns on a substantially larger asset and capital base. Together, these achievements mark a significant chapter in the bank’s development within Egypt’s banking sector.