Mashreq's Nine-Month Profit Rises 18% to $1.7 Billion on 33% Loan Growth

Mashreq reported profit after tax of $1.7 billion, or AED 6.1 billion, for the nine months to September 30, an 18% increase, as a 33% expansion in customer lending lifted both interest and fee revenue. The results were released on Thursday.

Profit before tax reached $2 billion, or AED 7.3 billion. Profit attributable to the owners of the parent rose 18% to $1.6 billion, or AED 6 billion, and earnings per share climbed 17% to $7.8, or AED 28.8. Return on equity improved to 20.4% from 19.8% in the same period last year, while return on assets was 2.1%.

Operating income grew 11% year on year to $2.8 billion, or AED 10.4 billion. Net interest income rose 7% to $1.8 billion, or AED 6.5 billion, carried by the larger loan book; volume growth outweighed lower benchmark rates through most of the nine-month period. Non-interest income rose 18%. Net investment income almost doubled to $163.1 million, or AED 599 million, helped by favourable fair-value movements in the equity investment portfolio. Net interest margin on earning assets was 2.7% for the nine months, and 2.7% in the third quarter.

Customer loans grew 33% year on year to $51.9 billion, or AED 190.6 billion, including a net increase of $5.9 billion, or AED 21.5 billion, in the third quarter across wholesale and retail clients. Total assets rose 33% year on year and 11% quarter on quarter to more than $110.4 billion, or AED 405.6 billion, led by lending, investments and liquid assets.

Funding for the third-quarter loan growth came from $2.7 billion, or AED 9.9 billion, of deposit inflows, alongside a $500 million senior bond and repurchase agreements. Deposits remained the core of the bank's funding, with a CASA ratio of 58%. Customer deposits rose 27% year on year to $64.6 billion, or AED 237.1 billion. Year-to-date deposit inflows of $8.8 billion, or AED 32.2 billion, exceeded loan growth of $7.2 billion, or AED 26.3 billion. Surplus liquidity went into securities, and the investment portfolio grew 75% year on year to $22.8 billion, or AED 83.7 billion. Strong deposit inflows were placed in high-quality liquid securities before being redeployed into lending.

Operating expenses rose 13% year on year to $886.5 million, or AED 3.3 billion, directed toward generative AI initiatives, digital platforms and hiring for market expansion. Asset quality improved over the period, with the non-performing loan ratio at 0.7%.

Chairman Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair said the global economy is undergoing significant transformation, pointing to evolving trade patterns, investment flows and geopolitical dynamics as forces reshaping the international economic landscape. The UAE, he said, has shown the strength of its economic model, combining policy stability, international connectivity and sustained investment, and has reinforced its position as a leading global business and financial centre.

The margin held at 2.7% while benchmark rates fell, which is the arithmetic of a volume-led book: more loans at thinner spreads. The gap between deposit inflows and lending explains the securities build. Cash that arrives faster than it can be lent still has to earn something, and the balance sheet now carries a far larger pool of liquid assets than it did a year ago.