Profits of Muscat Stock Exchange-Listed Banks Rise 10.6% in First Half of 2026

Oman’s Listed Banks Report RO305.2 Million Profit in First Half of 2026

Muscat: Banks listed on the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) reported combined net profits of RO305.2 million during the first half of 2026, marking a 10.6% increase from RO275.9 million recorded during the same period last year.

The strong performance was supported by continued economic growth, higher lending activity, rising customer deposits and improved asset quality, according to preliminary financial results released by the listed banks.

Bank Muscat Leads Profit Rankings

Bank Muscat remained the country’s most profitable lender, posting RO137.4 million in net profit during the first six months of 2026.

It was followed by:

• Bank Sohar International – RO53 million
• National Bank of Oman – RO39 million
• Bank Dhofar – RO27.2 million
• Ahli Bank – RO25.1 million
• Oman Arab Bank – RO17.6 million, up from RO14.6 million a year earlier.

Bank Nizwa was the only listed bank to report lower net profits, which declined to RO5.6 million from RO9.2 million in the first half of 2025.

Although the Islamic bank’s operating profit increased by 4% to RO15.5 million, higher provisions for non-performing loans—rising from RO4.3 million to RO9 million—weighed on its bottom line.

Assets Continue to Grow

The combined assets of listed local banks rose 16.2% year-on-year to RO50.1 billion by the end of June 2026, compared with RO43.1 billion a year earlier.

Bank Muscat remained the largest bank by assets with RO16.3 billion, accounting for 32.5% of the sector’s total assets.

It was followed by:

• Bank Sohar International – RO10.2 billion
• National Bank of Oman – RO6.2 billion
• Bank Dhofar – RO6.1 billion
• Oman Arab Bank – RO4.7 billion

Lending and Digital Banking Drive Growth

During the first half of the year, banks expanded lending to individuals and businesses, increased financing for corporate projects, strengthened digital banking services, improved customer service and continued efforts to enhance asset quality while controlling operating costs.

The banking sector’s strong performance also boosted investor confidence, with the combined market capitalisation of the seven listed banks rising to RO7.13 billion by the end of June, up from RO5.73 billion at the end of December 2025.

Bank Muscat remained the largest listed bank by market value at RO3.04 billion, representing 42.6% of the banking sector’s total market capitalisation.

Overall, listed banks account for 35.2% of the Muscat Stock Exchange’s total market capitalisation, which stood at RO20.26 billion at the end of June 2026.