First Abu Dhabi Bank: Fireside chat takeaways: crises bring opportunities

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First Abu Dhabi Bank: Fireside chat takeaways: crises bring opportunities

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First Abu Dhabi Bank

Fireside chat takeaways: crises bring

opportunities

Maintain Rating: NEUTRAL | PO: 20.30 AED | Price: 17.06 AED

We hosted a fireside chat with CFO Mr. Lars Kramer 20 May 2026

FAB’s CFO Lars Kramer expects some slowdown in credit expansion mid-term but is Equity

eager to look at new UAE opportunities. The management believes in the strong credit

pipeline and the bank’s international business is resilient (24% of revenue – BofA). CoR OlgaResearchVeselovaAnalyst>>

may stay at up to 70bpt for now (FY guidance; past 5Y avg: 64bpt), while NIM should be Merrill Lynch (DIFC)

stable YoY, assuming no policy rate changes. We expect almost flat profit in 2026 and +971olga.veselova@bofa.com4 425 8247

keep our Neutral rating at 9.2x 2026E P/E vs 9.1x for the UAE banks’ average. Rahul Rajan, CFA >>

10 takeaways – open to new prospects ResearchMerrill LynchAnalyst(DIFC)

rahul.rajan@bofa.com

1. FAB has limited exposure to segments that could be more vulnerable to conflict-

related stress (SMEs, retail and hospitality) and sees new opportunities emerging in the

UAE – related to new investments, infrastructure, logistics and pipelines.

Stock Data2. While loan growth may decelerate in 2026 (due to slower GDP growth), the recovery

may be solid beyond 2026. Resilience of the international business (US, Asia) reassures. Price 17.06 AED

3. Repayment of trade-related loans (seasonally strong in 1Q) would take several Price Objective 20.30 AED

quarters and will not be fully paid back in 2Q26. Date Established 07-May-2026

Investment Opinion B-2-7

4. The inflow of GRE/Public sector funds in 1Q was BAU – not viewed as transitory. 52-Week Range 14.86 AED-20.74 AED

5.