Ahli United Bank (Arabic: البنك الأهلي المتحد) is a regional bank based in Bahrain.[4] Its head office is situated at Manama and is the largest bank in Bahrain.[5][6] It is present in 8 countries in the Middle East and United Kingdom. Ahli United bank's ordinary shares are listed on Bahrain Stock Exchange since August 2000[7] and the Kuwait Stock Exchange since June 2006.[8]

Ahli United Bank
Native name
البنك الأهلي المتحد
IndustryBanking, Financial services
Headquarters,
Number of locations
147 Branches
Area served
Bahrain
Kuwait
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
Egypt
Iraq
Oman
Libya
Key people
Meshal AbdulAziz Alothman[1][2]
(Chairman)
Hala Hatem Sadek[1]
(CEO)
ProductsFinancial services
ServicesBanking
Increase USD 1,124.3 million (Q4 2018)
Increase USD 940.5 million (Q4 2018)
Total assetsIncrease USD 35.5 billion (Q4 2018)
Total equityIncrease USD 3.9 billion (Q4 2018)
Number of employees
3901[3]
Websitehttps://www.ahliunited.com

History

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Ahli United Bank established in May 2000 following a merger between The United Bank of Kuwait and Al-Ahli Commercial Bank, and it is licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain under a retail banking license. Following the merger, both entities became fully owned subsidiaries of Ahli United Bank.

Kuwait Finance House initiated discussions about a possible merger with Ahli United Bank in July 2017. However, the deal encountered delays, with the Central Bank of Kuwait requesting a reassessment in March 2020 due to the Covid pandemic. In 2022, Kuwait Finance House's completed its acquisition of Ahli United Bank for $11.6 billion. The acquisition created a lender with approximately $121 billion in assets.[9]

Operations

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The AUB (Ahli United Bank) Group provides retail banking, corporate banking, treasury and investment services, private banking and wealth management services and Islamic banking products and services. Additionally, the Group also provides life insurance products in both conventional and Takaful schemes.

In 2016, Ahli United Bank started its operations in the UAE through Ahli United Bank Limited (AUBL) in DIFC, Dubai, under a category 1 license.[10]

In 2018, Ahli United Bank signed an agreement with Bahrain’s labor fund, Tamkeen, to provide a BHD 40 million portfolio for subsidized financing to eligible medium and large-sized enterprises in Bahrain.[11]

Major shareholders

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  • Public Institution For Social Security - Kuwait (18.67%)[12]
  • Social Insurance Organization - Bahrain (10.01%)
  • Tamdeen Investment Co. - Kuwait (7.71%)

Business divisions

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The AUB Group operations consist of four core business divisions, all also offering Islamic finance products: Corporate Banking, Treasury and Investments, Retail Banking, Private Banking and Wealth Management.[13][14]

Islamic finance

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Ahli United Bank provides Sharia-compliant banking services through the Islamic banking subsidiary, Ahli United Bank K.S.C.P., Ahli United Bank (UK) PLC. In April 2010, the Bank of Kuwait and the Middle East was converted to a fully Sharia-compliant Islamic banking institution, and its name was changed to Ahli United Bank K.S.C. After that, the Group launched Islamic banking services in the first quarter of 2013, through an associate in Oman, Ahli Bank S.A.O.G. The AUB Group launched its Islamic banking services formally under the name, Al-Hilal.[15][16][17]

Entities

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  • Ahli United Bank B.S.C[18]
  • Ahli United Bank B.S.C. (DIFC Branch)[19]
  • Ahli United Bank (UK) P.L.C[20]
  • Alhilal Islamic[21]
  • Ahli United Bank (Egypt) S.A.E[22]
  • Ahli United Bank K.S.C.P[23]
  • Ahli Bank S.O.A.G
  • Commercial Bank of Iraq P.S.C[24]
  • United Bank for Commerce & Investment S.A.L.

Regional awards

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  • 2009 – Best Bank in Middle East Award – Global Finance[25]
  • 2012 – Euromoney Awards for Excellence[26]
  • 2014 – Best Regional Bank in the GCC – Capital Finance International[27]
  • 2016 – Middle East bank of the year – The Banker[28]
  • 2016 – Best Regional Bank in the GCC – Capital Finance International[29]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b List of Key Persons
  2. ^ "AUB's AGM approves a dividend of 20% in cash, 10% in bonus shares". 28 March 2019.
  3. ^ "Ahli United Bank's annual report 2018" (PDF).
  4. ^ "Home". ahliunited.com.
  5. ^ "Qatar's Ahli Bank says top shareholder to sell most of stake". Reuters. 28 November 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
  6. ^ "Ahli United Bank's overview".
  7. ^ "Ahli United Bank Profile". Bahrain Bourse. 2000. Archived from the original on 22 September 2019. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  8. ^ "Ahli United Bank B.S.C. Profile". Boursa Kuwait. 26 June 2006. Archived from the original on 6 November 2020. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  9. ^ "Kuwaiti banks reap the rewards of economic boom year". www.thebanker.com. Retrieved 2023-12-15.
  10. ^ "Ahli United Bank launches operations in DIFC". Gulf News. 23 March 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  11. ^ "Tamkeen and Ahli United Bank Sign a BD 40 Million Portfolio To Support Bahraini Businesses". Tamkeen. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  12. ^ "Ahli United Bank Major Shareholder" (PDF). Bahrain Bourse. 2019. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  13. ^ "Ahli United Bank Al bawaba". Al Bawaba. 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  14. ^ "Fitch Affirms Bahrain's Ahli United Bank and Subsidiaries' IDRs; Downgrades AUB's VR". Reuters. 10 September 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  15. ^ "Ahli United Bank". Islamic Markets IQ. 29 July 2019. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  16. ^ "Ahli United Bank Overview". Bahrain Clear. 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  17. ^ "Ahli United Bank Bahrain". Bank Track. 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  18. ^ "About – Aub".
  19. ^ "Dubai – AUB".
  20. ^ United, Webmaster Ahli. "AUB".
  21. ^ Alhilal Islamic
  22. ^ "AUB".
  23. ^ "Homepage". www.ahliunited.com.kw.
  24. ^ "Commercial Bank of Iraq".
  25. ^ "WORLD'S BEST BANKS 2009". Global Finance. 16 September 2009. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  26. ^ "Awards for Excellence 2012: Awards medals table". Euromoney. 5 July 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  27. ^ "Best Regional Bank, GCC, 2014: The CFI.co Award Winner is Ahli United Bank B.S.C." Capital Finance International. 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  28. ^ "The Banker's Bank of the Year Awards 2016". The Banker. 8 December 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  29. ^ "Ahli United Bank: Best Regional Bank GCC 2016". Capital Finance International. 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2019.