THE United Arab Emirates’ biggest lender by assets, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) beat estimates on Wednesday (May 1) with first-quarter net profit of 4.15 billion dirhams (S$1.54 billion).

The results were up from 3.93 billion dirhams reported a year earlier and topped analysts’ expectations of 3.6 billion dirhams, according to LSEG data.

Banks in the Gulf have been benefiting from the region’s growth prospects as governments boost investment to diversify economies and wean them off oil revenues.

They have also been helped by higher interest rates in the United States – with stubborn inflation pushing out market expectations for any rate cuts – as most Gulf currencies are pegged to the US dollar.

FAB’s net interest income – the difference between earnings on loans and payouts on deposits – was 4.32 billion dirhams, up from 4.03 billion dirhams a year ago.

Last week, regional peers Emirates NBD and ADCB reported double-digit year-on-year percentage growth in deposits as well as a robust increase in loans for the first quarter.

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FAB’s customer deposits reached 803 billion dirhams while net loans, advances, and Islamic financing were at 508 billion dirhams.

The bank’s total assets remained around 1.2 trillion dirhams as at Mar 31.

Last year, the Emirati lender said it had considered bidding for London-listed Standard Chartered but was no longer doing so.

The bank hired a group head of global markets and group head of mergers and acquisitions and corporate development, as the bank sharpens its focus on expansion.

In March, FAB declined to comment on a report that said it was studying potential purchases in Turkey, including lender Yapi Kredi. REUTERS