First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) ( ar, بنك أبوظبي الأول) is the largest

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

in the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...

. It was formed following a merger between

First Gulf Bank FGB (formerly known as First Gulf Bank) was the third largest bank by assets in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), until it merged with the National Bank of Abu Dhabi in December 2016 to form First Abu Dhabi Bank, creating the largest bank by asse ...

(FGB) and National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD). FAB offers financial solutions, products and services through its Corporate and Investment Banking and Personal Banking franchises. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi in Khalifa Business Park, the bank has a presence in five continents: Asia Pacific (APAC), Europe, Americas, Middle East and Africa (EAMEA).

History

First Abu Dhabi Bank was formed as a result of a merger between FGB and NBAD. On 3 July 2016, the two UAE banks announced that their boards of directors had voted unanimously on the recommendation to shareholders for the merger of the two entities. The transaction was approved by the respective shareholders on 7 December 2016. The transaction was executed through a share swap, with FGB shareholders receiving 1.254 NBAD shares for each FGB share they held. The merger led to the creation of the UAE’s largest bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) in April 2017. The launch of FAB’s new brand identity combined the ‘Abu Dhabi’ and ‘First’ identities from NBAD and FGB, the First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) name reflects the two banks’ roots in the region. The bank adopted the acronym F.A.B in its logo, which also features the “Awwal” (First) brand mark, enlarged to represent growth and leadership. In 2019, the bank began international expansion with the start of operations in Saudi Arabia. The Bank's net profit declined from AED 12.5 billion in 2019 to AED 10.6 billion in 2020. In January 2021, Hana Al Rostamani has been appointed as

group chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

. Company said its net profits were US$3.4 billion in the end of 2021, 19 percent up from than previous year.

Recognitions

FAB has been ranked by Global Finance as the safest bank in the UAE and the Middle East and the best bank in the UAE. The Banker’s Top 1000 World Banks 2020 list, measured by Tier 1 capital, ranked FAB as number one in the UAE, second in the Middle East and 85th across the globe – in addition to ranking the bank #109 by assets in the same list. FAB was also ranked first in the UAE, 4th in the Arab world and 303rd globally in Forbes annual ranking of the world’s 2000 largest public companies.

References

Banks established in 2017 Emirati companies established in 2017 Banks of the United Arab Emirates Companies based in Abu Dhabi {{Bank-stub