A bank formed by a mega-merger in 2017 has moved the Middle East’s centre of gravity to the UAE. James King reports.
Top 1000 World Banks 2018 Middle East
The Banker's editor, Brian Caplen, speaks to James King about First Abu Dhabi Bank's rise to the top of the Middle East regional table as well as the strong performance of Lebanese lenders in the 2018 Top 1000 Ranking.
Top 1000 World Banks 2018: Top 25 by Tier 1 Capital: Middle East
| Regional Rank | World Rank | Bank | Country | Tier 1 Capital |
| 1 | 81 | First Abu Dhabi Bank | United Arab Emirates | 20,508 |
| 2 | 82 | Qatar National Bank | Qatar | 20,108 |
| 3 | 94 | National Commercial Bank | Saudi Arabia | 17,020 |
| 4 | 104 | Al Rajhi Bank | Saudi Arabia | 14,867 |
| 5 | 109 | Emirates NBD | United Arab Emirates | 14,029 |
| 6 | 124 | Samba Financial Group | Saudi Arabia | 11,899 |
| 7 | 133 | Bank Hapoalim | Israel | 10,894 |
| 8 | 142 | Riyad Bank | Saudi Arabia | 10,299 |
| 9 | 146 | Bank Leumi le-Israel | Israel | 9,986 |
| 10 | 164 | Saudi British Bank (SABB) | Saudi Arabia | 8,892 |
| 11 | 165 | Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank | United Arab Emirates | 8,768 |
| 12 | 167 | National Bank of Kuwait | Kuwait | 8,717 |
| 13 | 171 | Banque Saudi Fransi | Saudi Arabia | 8,506 |
| 14 | 193 | Dubai Islamic Bank | United Arab Emirates | 7,072 |
| 15 | 205 | Kuwait Finance House | Kuwait | 6,441 |
| 16 | 208 | Arab National Bank | Saudi Arabia | 6,325 |
| 17 | 225 | AlInma Bank | Saudi Arabia | 5,493 |
| 18 | 234 | Mashreqbank | United Arab Emirates | 5,391 |
| 19 | 239 | Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) | Qatar | 5,114 |
| 20 | 243 | Union National Bank | United Arab Emirates | 5,045 |
| 21 | 244 | Arab Bank | Jordan | 5,028 |
| 22 | 249 | Israel Discount Bank | Israel | 4,868 |
| 23 | 257 | Commercial Bank | Qatar | 4,672 |
| 24 | 267 | BankMuscat | Oman | 4,328 |
| 25 | 272 | Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank | United Arab Emirates | 4,269 |
Middle East: Cost to income ratios |
Middle East: Return on equity |