Top 20 Middle East and Africa banks by market cap, Q2 2023

Most of the Middle East and Africa's biggest banks recorded an increase in market capitalization in the second quarter, S&P Global Market Intelligence data shows.

Fourteen of the 20 largest banks by market cap in the region logged increases between April 1 and June 30. Five booked double-digit growth, with Banque Saudi Fransi recording the highest at 15.22%. First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC's market cap grew nearly 6%, making the lender the third-largest bank in the region by this metric, overtaking Qatar National Bank QPSC after its market cap shrunk 4.04%.

The regional growth comes as most banks posted higher first-quarter earnings and retained solid loan books and capital buffers, despite economic uncertainty. The top banks in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates grew profits on the back of higher lending income due to higher-for-longer interest rates.

Middle Eastern banks were also resilient against the turbulence in the wide financial sector in March. Although some had write-downs from investments in under-stress European and North American financial institutions, the losses were small relative to total assets and do not represent a threat to capital or liquidity buffers, the Economist Intelligence Unit said in a recent report.

Saudi National Bank was the single biggest shareholder of Credit Suisse Group AG before the Swiss bank's government-orchestrated rescue by UBS Group AG. Its roughly 10% stake in Credit Suisse is expected to be converted into an approximate 0.5% stake in the combined UBS-Credit Suisse entity. Saudi National Bank's market cap grew 7.08% in the second quarter, standing at $58.09 billion as of June 30, ranking it second.

Other banks that enjoyed double-digit market cap growth included Saudi Arabia-based Riyad Bank and Alinma Bank, Dubai-based Emirates NBD Bank PJSC, and South Africa's FirstRand Ltd.

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-based Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corp. retained the number one spot in the ranking, with a market cap of $77.84 billion.

Dubai Islamic Bank PJSC and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank PJSC, whose market cap grew by 4.59% and 6.61%, respectively, entered the ranking in positions 18 and 20.