National Bank of Kuwait posted a first-half 2026 net profit of KD 325 million, up 3.0% from KD 315 million in the same period a year earlier, as the country's largest lender extended its steady earnings trajectory. Second-quarter net profit came in at KD 189.3 million, or about $614.9 million, 4.6% ahead of the KD 181.2 million recorded in the second quarter of 2025. The results reinforce NBK's position at the top of the Kuwaiti banking system, with a franchise that stretches from domestic retail into wholesale corporate and international operations.
The bank said in its investor presentation that the second quarter delivered an operating surplus of KD 205 million, reflecting continued momentum in core banking activity across its domestic franchise and international network. Group revenue trends supported both fee-based lines and core interest earnings during the period. Management has previously stressed the resilience of the group's diversified earnings model, and the first-half numbers are broadly consistent with that positioning.
DOMESTIC FRANCHISE ANCHORS RESULT
NBK continues to draw the bulk of its earnings from Kuwait, where its retail, corporate and private banking businesses dominate market share. The 4.6% year-on-year lift in second-quarter net profit reflects the underlying resilience of the domestic franchise against a still-supportive regional rates backdrop. Elevated policy rates across the Gulf Cooperation Council area, which mirrors moves by the US Federal Reserve, continues to support net interest margins at large regional banks.
International operations, spanning key Gulf markets, London and other regional financial centres, continued to contribute to the diversification of revenue. NBK's Islamic banking subsidiary Boubyan Bank remains a material driver of group earnings, though NBK did not detail the subsidiary's specific contribution in the headline release. Cost discipline, credit quality and provisioning trends were consistent with the group's steady operating posture, in line with the guidance NBK has offered in prior quarters.
TIER 1 SUKUK BOOSTS CAPITAL
The results follow NBK's recently issued $750 million perpetual Additional Tier 1 sukuk, a benchmark hybrid instrument that strengthens the group's regulatory capital position and supports further balance sheet growth. The transaction extends NBK's regular presence in the international debt capital markets, where it has established itself as one of the Gulf's most active Tier 1 issuers. Investor interest in the trade underlined the strength of the credit narrative around the group.
The perpetual sukuk aligns NBK's capital structure with the requirements of Basel III and the Central Bank of Kuwait's prudential framework, while giving management additional flexibility to deploy capital across lending, investment and acquisition opportunities. Management has previously emphasised the value of a diversified funding base spanning conventional and Islamic instruments. The Tier 1 issuance also fits within the wider trend across major Gulf banks of using perpetual sukuk to build out their capital stacks.
With the H1 numbers now on the tape, investors will look ahead to the second-half performance for signs of how NBK is navigating the rates backdrop and the pace of regional project finance activity. The 3.0% first-half profit growth marks a steady, if unspectacular, start to the year for the Gulf's largest lender by assets. Combined with the recent Tier 1 sukuk, the results leave the group with both the earnings momentum and the capital headroom to keep expanding its franchise in Kuwait and across the region.