Annual Report (20260218 rakbank air25 final english pdf)

human touch

Annual Integrated Report

SHEIKH ZAYED BIN SULTAN AL NAHYAM HIS HIGHNESS SHEIKH MOHAMED BIN ZAYED AL NAHYAN hisnisnuEss sHEixnsauo siu sAqR em uon4uuEo ML aAsiui

SUPRr M- C0f uCII. MEMB £R - RiHr r R O £ R/3 0 £ KH/IM/H

riis HisHaEss snEikn uonAuED Bin sAuD AL aAsihsi

CRCiW N PR!N-C O £ R.3 zL K H /IIV!EH

Contents

RAKBANK in Context 01

A Bank to Trust 05

Outlook 21

RAKBANK Overview 02

Who We Are 25

RAKBANK's Operating Context 29

Supervision Committee of the Islamic Window

Investor Relations 137

Financial Statements 06

Group Performance 39

Digital Transformation and Innovation 45

Enhancing Customer Experience 49

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity

152

153

Personal Banking Group 51

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows 154

Business Banking Group 55

Wholesale Banking Group 59

RAKislamic 63

Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements

155

RAKInsurance 65

Sustainability Review 04

Our Sustainability Management Approach 71

Material Matters 75

Our Material Matters unpacked 76

Our Key Relationships 77

Social Finance Framework 79

Responsible Procurement 81

Building and Sustaining our Talent Pool 83

Corporate Social Responsibility 91

Preservation of Natural Resources 101

GRI Content Index with Reference 269

IR link

RAKBANK

in Context

About our Annual Integrated Report 07

Leadership Insights 09

Chairman's Statement 09

CEO's Statement 11

2026 Vision 13

2025 at a Glance 15

Year in Review 17

Awards and Accolades in 2025 19

Outlook 21

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

About our

RAKBANK's Annual Integrated Report (AIR) provides our stakeholders with a concise and transparent assessment of our business and a holistic view of the Group's operations.

Reporting scope

This report outlines our strategy and business model, operating context, material risks, stakeholder interests, performance, prospects and governance for the

year from 1st January to 31st December 2025. At the same time, the report shares RAKBANK's strategy and implementation approach across the Group.

It deals with the Bank's primary activities, business divisions and key support units. By highlighting our business practices, strategic objectives, non-financial performance and profitability, the report aims to provide stakeholders with means to assess the Group's ability to create and sustain value over the short, medium and long terms.

Financial and non-financial reporting

The report extends beyond financial reporting and includes non-financial performance, opportunities, risks and outcomes associated with the Bank's key stakeholders, who can impact its ability to create sustainable value. While compiling this report, we considered our most material financial and nonfinancial matters and determined our disclosures accordingly.

RAKBANK's annual financial statements cover the Bank's activities, as well as all its subsidiaries. The consolidated financial statements were prepared in accordance with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and comply with the provisions of the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) and the Bank's Articles of Association.

Target audience

This report addresses, primarily, the information requirements of long-term investors (our equity shareholders, bondholders and prospective investors) and outlines how we create value for other key stakeholders, including our regulators, customers, staff and society.

Environmental, social and governance reporting Our approaches to governance and risk management are integrated throughout this report. We are working towards full alignment of our environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) disclosures with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), ADX ESG guidelines and the UAE Vision 2031.

Forward-looking statements

This report may contain forward-looking statements based on numbers, estimates or assumptions that are subject to change. These include statements regarding our intent, belief or current expectations with respect to RAKBANK's businesses and operations, market conditions, results of operation and financial condition, specific provisions and risk management practices.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. RAKBANK does not commit to publicly releasing the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances or unanticipated events after the date of publication. Due care has been used in the preparation of forecast information; however, actual outcomes may differ materially, whether positively or negatively, as forecasts and hypothetical examples are subject to inherent uncertainties and factors beyond RAKBANK's control.

Board responsibility

The Board approved this Annual Integrated Report on 17th February 2026 and acknowledged responsibility for its accuracy. It has applied its collective expertise, and, in its opinion, this AIR addressed all material issues to present an overview of the Bank's performance in the year under review.

Mohamed Omran Alshamsi

Chairman

Feedback on AIR

We welcome your feedback on this report. Please email your comments to ir@rakbank.ae

7 8

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

Leadership Insights

2025 was another year of strong progress for RAKBANK, reflecting the consistent execution of our strategy to become digital with a human touch, and the underlying strength of our franchise. Our focus on disciplined growth, digital innovation and meaningful customer experiences enabled the Bank to deliver record financial performance, with profit after tax reaching AED 2.6 billion, reinforcing our position as a resilient and trusted financial institution in the UAE.

Our purpose extends beyond financial performance. For nearly five decades, RAKBANK has supported customers, colleagues and communities, contributing to the UAE's longterm economic ambitions. Financial inclusion remains central to this commitment. In 2025, our microfinance programme surpassed 593,000 loans disbursed, helping customers manage essential needs and build greater financial resilience, supported by expanded financial literacy initiatives led by our colleagues.

We continued to invest in digital capabilities and new propositions that enhance accessibility, convenience and trust, while ensuring that human connection remains central to how we serve our customers. Our transformation into

a digital bank with a human touch is enabling greater efficiency and agility, underpinned by strong governance and risk discipline.

As a trusted partner in the UAE's growth, we remain committed to developing Emirati talent and building future-ready capabilities across the organisation. These investments in people and leadership are critical to sustaining longterm value creation.

As we approach RAKBANK's 50th anniversary in 2026, we do so with confidence. With a strong balance sheet and a clear strategic direction, the Bank is well positioned to continue delivering sustainable value for shareholders while supporting our customers, communities and the wider economy.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank our colleagues, customers, partners and shareholders for their continued trust and support as we build the future together.

9 10

With a strong balance sheet and a clear strategic direction, the Bank is well positioned to continue delivering sustainable value for shareholders while supporting our customers, communities and the

wider economy.

Mohamed Omran Alshamsi

Chairman

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

Leadership Insights

As RAKBANK enters its 50th anniversary, we do so from a position of strength and confidence. This milestone reflects five decades of trust and partnership with our customers, colleagues and communities, and provides a solid foundation for the future we are shaping.

Our progress was driven by disciplined execution of our strategy to be digital with a human touch.

2025 was a defining year for RAKBANK, as ambition translated decisively

into execution. We delivered record performance, with profit before tax reaching AED 2.9 billion, supported by diversified income streams, sustained balance sheet growth and strong asset quality. Total assets exceeded AED 100 billion for the first time, while customer deposits reached AED 70 billion, reinforcing the resilience of our balance sheet and the depth of trust our customers place in us.

Our progress was driven by disciplined execution of our strategy to be digital with a human touch. Mission Zero became firmly embedded as a mindset across the organisation, sharpening our focus on zero errors, zero delays and zero complaints, and delivering measurable improvements across customer journeys and operational performance.

Digital engagement continued to scale. During the year, we recorded over 58 million digital logins, while our AI-powered digital assistant, Rai, served more than 270,000 customers, enabling faster, more intuitive service while preserving human connection where it matters most.

Across the Bank, we processed over AED 280 billion in payments, supporting individuals and businesses to transact seamlessly and securely.

In Personal Banking, we strengthened our premium propositions through the launch of the Elevate Credit Card and the opening of new Elite Banking Centres across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Ras Al-Khaimah, alongside continued enhancements to our digital banking experience. Our Wealth and Elite businesses delivered strong growth, supported by sustained HNWI inflows,

deeper client engagement, and expanded digital investment capabilities, including mutual funds and structured solutions.

SME banking remains at the core of RAKBANK's identity. In 2025 alone, we onboarded more than 22,000 entrepreneurs and disbursed

AED 4.7 billion in SME loans, supporting businesses to launch, scale and grow. We enhanced our SME proposition through digital invoicing, QR-based payments and faster settlement capabilities, enabling improved cash flow and operational efficiency. Our leadership in this space was recognised when RAKBANK was named Euromoney's Best Bank for SMEs in the UAE.

In Wholesale Banking, we continued to drive strategic diversification and deepen our market presence across the UAE. We expanded our suite of solutions across escrow, trade finance and debt capital markets, enabling clients to diversify funding and capture new opportunities. During the year, we executed our first bilateral aircraft financing transaction with flydubai, doubled unfunded trade volumes year-on-year and acted as joint lead manager on landmark debt capital markets transactions. Our Financial Institutions business expanded mandates across Europe and Africa, leading syndicated loan transactions and opening new growth corridors. Momentum in FX and treasury remained strong, supported by platform enhancements delivering

real-time pricing and seamless execution. In line with our commitment to innovation, RAKBANK became the first conventional bank in the UAE to enable crypto trading in AED via our mobile platform.

Beyond traditional banking, our ecosystem offerings continued to scale. Adoption of our family super app, Skiply, remained strong, serving over 218,000 users, 358,000 students and 383 educational institutions, reflecting growing engagement across schools and communities. Protego, our digital insurance aggregator, continued to gain traction, expanding access to simple and transparent insurance solutions.

Our microfinance programme surpassed

593,000 loans disbursed to blue-collar workers, advancing financial inclusion. ESG priorities remain embedded across our lending, operations and governance, while colleague-led councils continued to contribute meaningfully to financial literacy and community engagement.

These achievements were recognised through more than 50 industry awards, reflecting the credibility of our strategy and the impact of disciplined execution.

At RAKBANK, our purpose goes beyond financial performance. For over 50 years, we have supported generations of colleagues and customers, working hand in hand with the communities we serve to contribute to the UAE's longterm ambitions. Our culture is anchored in the 5Cs - Connect, Communicate, Collaborate, Celebrate and stay Curious - and these values shape everything we do, bringing together colleagues across 55 nationalities and five generations.

This came to life in 2025 through our four councils, which delivered more than 100 initiatives and over 2,500 volunteering hours, uniting colleagues, customers and communities around a shared sense of purpose.

Looking ahead, the global environment remains complex, shaped by geopolitical uncertainty and shifting economic dynamics. The UAE, however, continues to demonstrate resilience, supported

by a strong non-oil economy and a clear long-term vision. As we enter our 50th year, RAKBANK remains firmly focused on accelerating investment in technology, innovation and customer experience, while maintaining strong governance and risk discipline.

I would like to thank our colleagues for their dedication, our customers for their trust, and our partners and shareholders for their continued support. Together, we are building a

stronger, more resilient RAKBANK, ready for the opportunities ahead.

Raheel Ahmed Group Chief Executive Officer

11 12

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

In October 2022, RAKBANK finalised its 2026 Strategic Plan. 2025 marks further progress towards executing the vision to "Become the digital bank with a human touch, with you in key moments of truth".

Key strategic pillars

Become Bank of choice for SMEs

Personalise and digitise Retail Banking

Build a comprehensive Wholesale Banking offering

Deliver cufting-edge banking innovation

Key strategic objectives

Continued diversification of our business for sustainable growth

Become the most personalised bank in UAE with a brilliant customer experience

Deliver scalable growth through digitisation and automation

Invest in our people

Ongoing commitment to our community and ESG

Central to the strategy are four key principles:

1

2

13

Continued diversification of our business for sustainable growth

3 and automation

Deliver scalable growth

through digitisation

Become the most personalised bank in UAE by offering a brilliant customer experience

4 commitment to our

Invest in our

people and ongoing

community and ESG

14

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

Full year results (AED million)

Balance sheet highlights (AED billion)

Digital transformation (ˈ000s)

Preserving natural resources

Direct electricity consumption (kWh, units in ˈ000) 16,072

2024: 15,370

Total water consumption (ˈ000 litres) 40,139

2024: 37,283

Customer satisfaction

Overall customer

satisfaction score

(2024: 4.7/5)

4.8/5

15

Diversity and inclusion at year-end

16

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report

Year in Review

May

• Launched a programme to accelerate Emirati women's careers in technology

  July

• Issued USD 300 million Additional Tier 1 (AT1) capital securities

• The FI team (WBG) acted as coordinator for a GCC-focused sustainability-linked syndicated term loan

• Opened state-of-the-art Elite Banking Centres in Abu Dhabi and Dubai

  September

• WBG launched DCM to diversify corporate funding options

  RAKBANK in Context

  January

  • RAKBANK launched a crypto brokerage service within the mobile app

    March

  • Enhanced the app with personalised FX rates and instant credit limit increase

    November

    • Expanded SCF platform, financing over AED 207 million in invoices

      February

    • Entered a strategic partnership with Faturalab to transform supply chain finance in the GCC

    • Rolled out a unified communications hub, enabling customer notifications in preferred languages

    • Introduced AI-powered fraud alerting and enhanced sanctions screening

      April

    • Published the latest SME Confidence Index based on a survey of 1,200+ UAE SMEs

      June

    • Introduced AI digital assitant "Rai" changing the way customers interact with the Bank

    • Strengthened AML/CFT frameworks with advanced monitoring and real-time fraud detection

      August

      • Skiply 2.0 enhancements released simplified payment journeys and smart payment plans for school and extracurricular fee management

        October

      • Signed MoU with Sharjah Media City (Shams) to expand financial access for startups and SMEs across the UAE

      • Recognised among top UAE banks for customer experience benchmarking

        December

        • Achieved full integration with AANI instant payments and Western Union

17 18

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

in 2025

Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2025

UAE's Best Bank for SMEs

MENA Banking Excellence Awards 2024 - MEEd Product

MENA Islamic SME Bank of the Year Most Innovative real-time payment solutions

Middle East Banking AI and Analytics Summit Awards

Excellence in Intelligent Document Processing using LLM

The Global Economic Awards

Best Business Banking Solutions for SMEs

The Digital Banker

Best Digital CX-Account Opening and Customer Onboarding

Best Digital Assets Exchange-Retail (Crypto)

MEA Finance Banking Technology Summit and Awards

Best Integrated Payments Systems (Skiply)

Best Analytics System (Telemetry) Best Analytics System (PBG)

Global Business and Finance Magazine 2025

Best SME Bank UAE Best Digital Bank UAE

Best Customer Service Bank UAE

Asian Banking and Finance Corporate and Investment Banking Awards

Social Bond of the Year

Global Finance

Top Innovations in Finance in the Middle East for RAKBANK Telemetry

MEA Business Achievement Awards

CX Excellence Skiply

Annual Future Bank Summit

Top 10 BFSI Leaders in the Middle East

Finance Middle East

recognised Mr. Raheel Ahmed, Group CEO, as Banking Executive of the Year

Gulf Business Awards

Banking Company of the Year

Qorus SME Banking Awards 2025

SMEsouk podcast - SME Banking Impact Award

ABF Retail Banking Awards

Call Centre Initiative of the Year Compliance Initiative of the Year Analytics Initiative of the Year (Telemetry)

Service Innovation of the Year (Website)

MEA Finance Industry Award

Best Premium Banking Services (RAKBANK Elite) Best Digital Transformation Implementation

19 20

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK in Context

RAKBANK is strategically positioned for sustained growth and transformation in 2026, building on the achievements of 2025.

Our forward-looking strategy emphasises several critical areas.

Potential risks and challenges

RAKBANK recognises potential risks across various domains and remains committed to proactive risk management and mitigation.

1

2

3

Financial performance

Business diversification

Digital transformation

4

5

6

Sustainability initiatives

Employee development

Community engagement

• Maintain strong financial performance by focusing on diversified revenue streams and prudent risk management

• Achieve ongoing productivity improvement to ensure we can serve our customers in the most efficient way possible

• Further diversifying the business and asset mix

• Continue developing our Business Banking and Wholesale banking segments through strategic partnerships and innovative solutions

• Expand Personal Banking's market presence and improve its service offerings

• Complete the migration to new digital platforms, including AI and data enhancements, CRM and ERP systems, to improve operational efficiency and customer service

• Achieve improvement in customer experience (CX) metrics by further personalising customer journeys and enhancing digital interactions

• Use AI and data-driven insights to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency

• Target ongoing reduction in water, power and paper usage, while expanding our green finance portfolio and supporting the UAE's sustainability goals

• Sustain the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles into RAKBANK's business

• Expand and enhance employee training and development programmes

• Maintain a focus on Emiratisation and promote diversity and inclusion within the workforce

• Drive ongoing workplace modernisation and new ways of working

• Strengthen community support initiatives, including financial literacy programmes and small business support

• Increase our CSR funding and volunteer hours to expand our positive impacts on society

1. Economic and market risks

Fluctuations in interest rates could influence margins and profitability, particularly in a declining rate environment. Geopolitical tensions and economic instability in key markets pose challenges to growth and financial resilience.

2. Regulatory and compliance risks

Adapting to dynamic regulatory landscapes, especially in digital banking and ESG compliance, requires sustained effort. Higher compliance costs may weigh on overall profitability.

3. Operational risks

Rapid digital transformation demands substantial investment, presenting risks related to system integration, cybersecurity and talent acquisition. We have prioritised meeting ambitious productivity and cost-reduction targets in tackling the competitive UAE banking environment.

4. Competitive risks

The financial sector faces heightened competition from neo-banks, fintech companies and non-banking entities, which necessitates continuous innovation to maintain profitability and market share. Increasing customer demand for seamless digital experiences highlights the need for continual tech investment.

5. Sustainability risks

Achieving ambitious sustainability targets, such as reducing the carbon footprint, requires dedicated resources and ongoing commitment. Effective community engagement in a changing society is RAKBANK's key to long-term success.

6. Cyber and information security risks

Increasing cyber and information security risks owing to the evolving threat landscape, necessitating robust measures to protect sensitive data and maintain customer trust.

7. Fraud risks

The Bank must remain vigilant against fraud risks, implementing stringent controls and monitoring systems to detect and prevent fraudulent activities that could impact financial stability and reputation.

RAKBANK's strong financial performance, focus on innovation and sustainable practices - in tandem with overcoming risks and challenges - position RAKBANK for success in 2026 and beyond.

21 22

RAKBANK

Overview

Who We Are 25

RAKBANK's Operating Context 29

Our Business Model 31

Our Value-creating Business Strategy 33

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK Overview

RAKBANK, founded in 1976, is a prominent UAE public joint stock company providing diverse financial services like conventional, Islamic banking and insurance. It is renowned for SME and personal banking, with a growing wholesale banking segment enhancing its success.

Where we operate

RAKBANK's main office is located in Ras Al-Khaimah, UAE, along Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road with RAKBANK Corporate Headquarters in Dubai, UAE, Dubai Silicone Oasis. The Bank operates branches throughout the UAE, including locations in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman and Fujairah.

Subsidiaries

* These represent legal ownership of the Bank. However, beneficial ownership is 100% as the remaining interest is held by a related party on trust and for the benefit of the Bank.

During the current period, the Group incorporated two new wholly owned subsidiaries viz. RAKAZA and RAKBANK Digital Assets L.L.C. RAKBANK Digital Assets L.L.C.'s principal activity is to issue payment tokens and the formalities with regard to capital infusion are in progress.

Ownership structure

The Ras Al-Khaimah Government owns 49.35% of RAKBANK, which is publicly traded on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.

Source: ADX

Numbers may not add up due to rounding.

25 26

Subsidiary

Ownership interest

Incorporated

Principal activities

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK Overview

Vision, mission, values and personality

Vision Mission

The digital bank with a human touch, with you in key moments of truth.

To become a leading customer-focused bank in the UAE, offering convenient access to

innovative and competitive financial products across multiple channels to individuals and businesses.

Values

• Integrity - RAKBANK knows trust is fundamental and, to be trusted, it must remain competent and honest

• Transparency - The Bank discloses all product terms and conditions by using simple language on its website and at its points of sale

• Collaboration - RAKBANK forms diverse teams to achieve befter results and responsibly partner with stakeholders and regulators to serve society's broader interests

• Accountability - RAKBANK recognises that it is ultimately accountable to its shareholders, and so focuses unrelentingly on maximising long-term shareholder and asset value

  Personality

• Action - RAKBANK believes in gefting things done and considers efficient decision-making to be paramount

• Clarity - The Bank aims to provide information to its customers that is clear, simple and regularly updated through the Bank's website and other communication channels

• Agility - RAKBANK likes to think of itself as "Simply Different". It is driven by the changing and dynamic needs of its valued customers

• Innovation - The Bank is firmly commifted to investing in smarter banking solutions and increasingly uses technology to make its range of services more accessible to more customers, wherever they are

27 28

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK Overview

Operating Context

Economic Factors Customer Trends

In 2025, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) economy maintained its strong growth trajectory. The

UAE Central Bank forecasted 2025 GDP to grow 4.9%, outpacing global averages, supported by robust non-oil sector expansion of 4.5%, with notable gains in trade, tourism, manufacturing and financial services. Non-oil activities are forecasted to account for 75% of total GDP in 2025. The financial and insurance sectors were notable contributors, with the banking industry continuing to play a central role in economic growth.

During the year, UAE banks benefited from a benign credit environment and rising demand for credit across retail, SME and corporate segments. UAE regulatory landscape continues to evolve under a proactive regulatory agenda,

with increasing emphasis on customer protection, financial crime controls and cyber resilience

as digitisation accelerates. The sector saw accelerated adoption of open finance frameworks, instant payment systems such as AANI and enhanced compliance standards, reflecting the country's commitment to innovation and security. Digital transformation remained a dominant theme, with banks investing heavily in AI-driven customer experience, cloud migration and realtime fraud prevention. These developments, combined with robust capital adequacy and healthy profitability across leading institutions, underscore the UAE's strategic focus on building a resilient, technology-enabled financial ecosystem.

Overall, the UAE's economic resilience and diversified growth have provided a solid foundation for RAKBANK's ongoing success in 2025.

The shift to digital banking continues with customers increasingly preferring online and mobile, always available, banking solutions. RAKBANK remains commifted to investing in its digital capabilities and solutions to ensure the Bank can respond to the changing needs and demands of its customers and deliver a hyper-personalised and seamless experience.

Customers are increasingly expecting simple, intuitive and real-time digital journeys,

with routine transactions continuing to migrate to digital channels and services supported by AI-enabled tools such as digital assistants. Expectations are also shifting toward real-time payments and seamless, omnichannel engagement - delivered in the customer's preferred language - alongside heightened demand for security, transparent communication and proactive fraud prevention as digital activity expands.

29 30

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK Overview

RAKBANK provides services through multiple channels to assist customers with their financial transactions.

The following infographic presents a high-level analysis of the Group's strategic business activities, along with the associated resource inputs and outcomes.

Business segments

Personal Banking

• Serves individual customers through our digital and physical channels

• Unique customer propositions catering to individuals across conventional and Islamic banking

• Comprehensive range of everyday financial products, including accounts, deposits, cards, mortgages, unsecured loans and wealth management

Business Banking

• Serves SME customers through our digital and physical channels

• Leading bank in UAE for the SME segment, offering conventional and Islamic banking solutions

• Offering includes accounts, trade finance, cash management, foreign exchange, interest rate risk management and loans

Wholesale Banking

• Serves government entities, large corporates and financial institutions

• Offering includes accounts, trade finance, cash management, foreign exchange, interest rate risk management and loans

• Includes RAKBANK Treasury function

% of Group operating income

29.8%

39.6%

30.6%

31 32

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report

Our Value-creating

RAKBANK's 2026 Strategic Plan

RAKBANK Overview

In 2025, the Bank advanced significantly towards delivering its multi-year transformation plan approved in 2022.

Underpinned by strong financial performance, sustained customer growth and enhanced governance, we accelerated

In October 2022, RAKBANK finalised its 2026 Strategic Plan. The year under review is the third year of our ambitious journey towards a digital bank with a human touch. In 2026, the Bank will update its strategy for the period from 2027 to 2031.

Central to the current strategy are four key principles against which we continuously deliver:

progress across key strategic pillars. Investments in cutting-edge technology and talent, combined with innovative solutions, have strengthened operational resilience and elevated the customer experience.

1. Continued diversification of our business for sustainable growth: RAKBANK will continue to

   diversify its balance sheet, particularly through expansion in segments such as Corporate

2. Become the most personalised bank in UAE by offering a brilliant customer experience: We are

   committed to providing an awesome customer experience to our customers through hyper

   Banking, the Commercial Banking segment within Business Banking, and the Affluent segment within Personal Banking.

   personalisation. A testament to this is the launch of specific value propositions across key customer segments and the constant introduction of new digital onboarding journeys.

3. Deliver scalable growth through digitisation and automation: We are focused on increasing

   efficiency by managing cost and expenditure despite the inflationary environment and transformation costs. In 2025, we carried

   on digitising our processes, allowing us to increase operating efficiency and manage costs. Our digital transactions increased by 32% year-on-year.

4. Invest in our people and ongoing commitment to our community and ESG: RAKBANK

demonstrates commitment to employees through a comprehensive and ongoing workplace modernisation programme. We actively promote diversity and inclusion, exemplified by increased nationality diversity and a focus on gender equality, along with an ongoing focus on increasing Emiratisation across

all areas of the Bank. RAKBANK's commitment to community is demonstrated by the issuance of the First Public Social Bond in GCC. In 2025, we successfully achieved a significant milestone in our sustainability journey with a 26% reduction in paper usage, reinforcing our commitment to environmental responsibility and operational efficiency.

33 34

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report RAKBANK Overview

Delivering on our vision

Our vision is to be digital with a human touch, supporting our customers during their key moments of truth. To achieve this, we continuously transform all areas of the Bank to ensure we provide the banking services our customers need, in the manner they now expect. In 2025, RAKBANK continued implementing this plan, as detailed in this report.

The following reflects progress in delivering this vision over the past year.

Objective

Performance

Objective

Performance

Ongoing diversification of core business for sustainable growth

Become the most personalised bank in UAE with a brilliant customer experience

Diversified asset mix

• Maintained a diversified asset mix with increasing contribution from Wholesale Banking (58.7% of business assets)

  Stabilising our risk profile

• Reduced our cost of risk from 3.1% in FY'21 to 0.9% in FY'25

  Enhancing customer journeys with hyper personalisation

• The onboarding journey for business accounts is customised, based on the customer's profile, providing a more seamless and personal account application experience

  Invest in our people Developing and diversifying our workforce

  
  
  

  • Delivered 30,873 hours of training in FY'25

  • RAKBANK built a comprehensive range of skills development and training programmes, including courses from the Emirates Institute of Finance (EIF), compliance-based learning, LinkedIn Learning and business-specific technical development

  • RAKBANK launched an internal social media platform - "Let's Engage" enabling deeper connection, communication and collaboration across the Bank

  • Modernising our workplace, enabling full hybrid capability for RAKBANK employees

    Deliver scalable expansion through digitisation and automation

    Improving customer feedback

• Improved the Personal Banking app rating from 2.9 in December 2021 to 4.6 in December 2025, and the Business Banking app rating from 3.0 to 4.5 for the same period

• Overall customer satisfaction score: 4.8 (out of 5)

  Becoming more scalable

• Balance sheet has expanded by 18.9% YoY while maintaining our cost-to-income ratio at 35.8% in FY'25 compared to 35.2% in FY'24

  Driving digitisation

• Increased the number of digitally active customers by 19% YoY in FY'25

• Increased the number of digital transactions by 32% YoY in FY'25

  Ongoing commitment to our community and ESG

  Supporting our community

• RAKBANK has contributed AED 500,000 to Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Charitable Educational Foundation, a leading charitable institution in Ras Al-Khaimah dedicated to providing free, quality education to students from underprivileged families

• A total of 2,344 participants engaged in financial literacy initiatives. These included a financial literacy school, financial clinics for employees and customers, as well as SME training within the SMEsouk

• In 2025, our microfinance programme surpassed 593,000 loans disbursed, helping customers manage essential needs and build greater financial resilience, supported by expanded financial literacy initiatives led by our colleagues

• RAKBANK partnered with Emirates Development Bank (EDB) to announce a landmark AED 1 billion co-financing initiative, unveiled at "Make it in the Emirates", to empower UAE-based micro, small and medium enterprises (mSMEs) and drive growth in national priority sectors

• RAKBANK has achieved 77.4% of its share of the UBF Sustainable Finance pledge

  Reducing our carbon footprint

• Paper consumption reduced by 26% YoY in FY'25

35 36

Operational

Review

Group Performance 39

Digital Transformation and Innovation 45

Enhancing Customer Experience 49

Personal Banking Group 51

Business Banking Group 55

Wholesale Banking Group 59

RAKislamic 63

RAKInsurance 65

03

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

Group Performance

Overview

In 2025, RAKBANK turned ambition into action, delivering record profitability and reinforcing the strength of our diversified franchise. These results reflect disciplined execution of our "digital bank with a human touch" strategy, a continued shift towards secured, lower-risk assets and sustained momentum in non-interest income.

RAKBANK delivered strong FY'25 profitability supported by diversified income and improved credit quality. Operating income increased to AED 5.17 billion (FY'24: AED 4.71 billion), underpinned by resilient margins (NIM 4.3%) and an enhanced income mix. Non-interest income reached AED 1.48 billion (+28.9% YoY), driven by growth in fees, FX and investment income, lifting fee-to-total income to 28.7% (FY'24: 24.4%).

Total assets increased to AED 105.0 billion, supported by growth

across lending and investments. Gross loans and advances rose to AED 55.9 billion, with growth delivered across segments: Retail

Banking loans increased to AED 25.0 billion, Business Banking to AED 11.3 billion, and Wholesale Banking to AED 19.7 billion. Customer deposits reached AED 70.5 billion, with CASA deposits of AED 45.8 billion and

a CASA ratio of 65%, one of the highest in the industry.

Portfolio credit quality improved materially. Net impairment charge reduced to AED 0.451 billion (down 42% YoY), reflecting a shift towards secured, lower-risk assets and a benign credit environment. The Stage 3 Loans Ratio improved to 1.9% (FY'24: 2.2%), and cost of risk closed at 0.9% (FY'24: 1.7%).

Shareholder returns remained robust with ROE of 20.2% and ROA of 2.8%, reflecting strong profitability and balance sheet efficiency.

Capital remained strong and supportive of growth. Total capital adequacy ratio stood at 18.1% as at 31st December 2025, with CET

1 ratio of 14.5% and including Tier 1 of 15.9%. Liquidity metrics were actively monitored and remained

within Board-approved risk appetite and regulatory thresholds.

Highlights

In 2025, we sustained strong momentum in executing our technology strategy, accelerating modernisation, automation and data-led service tracking to improve resilience, speed and customer outcomes. We expanded our digital capabilities through landmark launches such as crypto brokerage, microservices enablement and award-winning observability, while scaling DevOps to increase delivery throughput and productivity gains. We also advanced AI adoption through high-impact use cases, strengthening the foundations for the final year of our four-year digital transformation strategy in 2026.

Customer experience remained our north star as we embedded Mission Zero - zero errors, zero complaints and zero delays - into how we design, measure and manage customer journeys. Proactive monitoring and service recovery frameworks strengthened end-to-end fulfilment and helped reduce friction across key touchpoints.

These efforts were reinforced by a continued focus on customer trust, security and transparent communication across channels.

Personal Banking sustained strong momentum in 2025 through deeper engagement and continued digitisation, supported by

propositions that enhance everyday banking and payments. Our "beyond banking" platforms continued to scale, with Skiply expanding its role in family payments and Protego strengthening our digital insurance proposition. We also advanced financial inclusion through microfinance, helping replace informal borrowing with transparent, regulated solutions.

Business Banking delivered a strong year, supported by healthy growth on both sides of the balance sheet and continued progress in digital onboarding and straight through processing. As the UAE's go-to SME bank, we strengthened customer acquisition and relationship penetration, while maintaining a disciplined approach to risk and compliance. Recognition such as Euromoney's Best Bank for SMEs reinforces our positioning and the relevance of our ecosystem-led support for the SME community.

Wholesale Banking delivered strong progress in 2025 through deeper client relationships and continued expansion of solutions across transaction banking, escrow, trade finance and markets. Our client base grew by 16%, supported by enhanced product capability and partnerships across the UAE. Digital innovation - including improvements that strengthen client accessibility and execution - continued to reinforce the scalability and competitiveness of the platform.

RAKislamic maintained its strong upward trajectory in 2025, delivering robust performance supported by disciplined execution and stable asset quality, while advancing product innovation and core system priorities to increase its contribution to Group profitability as we execute the 2026 strategy.

RAKInsurance also delivered record profitability, underpinned by underwriting discipline, effective claims management, reinsurance optimisation and investment income, reflecting resilience through evolving market conditions; Protego further strengthens the Group's insurance value chain as a digital first distribution platform aligned with our "digital bank with a human touch" strategy.

39 40

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report

Key financial highlights

Operating income

AED 5.2 Bn

(+10% YoY) 2024: AED 4.7 Bn

Total assets

AED105.0 Bn

(+18.9% YoY) 2024: AED 88.3 Bn

Deposits

AED 70.5 Bn

(+18.1% YoY) 2024: AED 59.6 Bn

Return on assets

2.8%

2024: 2.6% (FY'24)

Return on equity

Digitally active customers

(FY'25)

20.2% (FY'25) +19% (YoY)

2024: 18.4% (FY'24) 2024: +13% (YoY)

Payment through our digitally

+9% (YoY)

2024: +10% (YoY)

Card spend

Digital transactions

+32% (YoY)

2024: +14% (YoY)

+15% (YoY)

2024: +14% (YoY)

active rails (In/Out)

Operational Review

Assets and advances growth (AED billion)

Loans and advances by segment (AED billion)

Customer deposits (AED billion)

RAKBANK's focus on digitisation continues to enhance customer experience and operational resilience. We are modernising our digital infrastructure, strengthening real-time monitoring capabilities and scaling automation to deliver superior service at pace without losing the empathy and trust our customers expect.

We remain steadfast in supporting the UAE's Economic Vision 2031, including financial inclusion and SME enablement, while embedding sustainability into our products and funding choices; reflected

in initiatives such as the Social Finance Bond.

Our performance in 2025 reinforces the strength of our strategy and our ability to deliver sustainable and scalable value creation through diversification and digitisation.

41

Key drivers of performance

In 2025, our strategic transformation and diversification agenda translated into stronger outcomes, anchored in customer centricity, digital leadership and prudent risk management. This progress reflects disciplined execution of our "digital with a human touch" strategy, combining scalable digitisation and automation with consistent service quality across the customer lifecycle.

Mission Zero - zero errors, zero complaints and zero delays -continued to guide our approach to customer experience in 2025, with ongoing journey redesign strengthening service quality, responsiveness and consistency across key touchpoints. In parallel, our internal transformation progressed as the operating model matured, supported by sustained investment in technology, data and AI-enabled capabilities to enhance

productivity, strengthen control and reinforce operational rigour across the Bank.

Key drivers of financial performance:

• Business Banking: Strong SME ecosystem proposition

  supported growth in relationships and deposits, enabled by a streamlined digital onboarding journey

• Wholesale Banking: Loan growth was led by corporate and financial institutions assets, supporting diversification and improved

  risk-adjusted returns

• Retail Banking: Growth was supported by deposits, mortgage and expat lending, alongside continued momentum in digital engagement and payments

• Income mix: Non-interest income expanded meaningfully, driven by fees, FX and investment income, strengthening the resilience of the revenue base

Financial performance: Snapshot

Numbers in the tables may not add up due to rounding

42

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

Contribution of RAKBANK net profit by business segment

Numbers in the tables may not add up due to rounding

Looking ahead

Looking ahead to 2026, RAKBANK will continue to build on the momentum of 2025, executing the Board-approved transformation plan while deepening customer relationships, empowering SMEs and advancing financial inclusion. Our vision of becoming digital with a human touch will continue to guide how we simplify processes, enhance service quality and deliver exceptional digital experiences.

The external environment remains shaped by geopolitical uncertainty and shifting global trade dynamics. In this context, we will remain vigilant and disciplined, supported by a prudent risk culture and a resilient, diversified business model. With the UAE's continued economic strength and diversification agenda, RAKBANK is well positioned to seize new opportunities while staying focused on sustainable, long-term value creation.

43 44

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

and Innovation

Overview

Our vision to lead in customer experience through hyper-personalised, digital-first banking sits at the heart of our 2026 strategy. This vision shaped our priorities throughout 2025, as we remained focused on using technology and data to enhance customer experience while driving greater operational efficiency across the Bank.

The continued advancement of our digital agenda is underpinned by an uncompromising focus on speed, scale, compliance and security. We are increasingly applying AI across both internal and customer-facing use cases, supported by data-led insights that help us target improvements consistently across the value chain.

Technology and data play a central role in delivering our ambition to be a digital bank with a human touch. Through the introduction of new capabilities, the modernisation of existing platforms and the creation of enhanced digital channel experiences, we are steadily transforming how customers interact with us without changing the essence of our banking relationship.

Highlights

During 2025, we continued our strong momentum in the execution of our technology strategy, achieving the following digital milestones:

• In collaboration with Bitpanda, successfully launched a crypto brokerage service through our mobile banking app in record time, becoming the first conventional bank in the UAE to enable crypto trading services for its customers

• Launched a microservices platform, enabling customer-facing functionality. The platform is one of the most technologically advanced we have built, with

  high resilience, scalability and performance. The rollout was seamless, with zero defects and no service disruptions

• Institutionalised data-led insights into technology service tracking through the internally developed and multiple award-winning RAK Telemetry platform

Strategic partnerships

We entered a range of new partnerships in 2025 to enhance our digital capabilities.

• AWS partnership for microservices platform integration

• Databricks data platform partnership

• MoU with Microsoft

Advancing technology for our people

During 2025, we conducted an internal pilot of Microsoft 365 Copilot to evaluate its impact on productivity while closely assessing governance considerations in preparation for a broader rollout.

In parallel, we developed an automated HR buddy application designed to assist employees by providing timely support for a wide range of HR-related queries.

Cybersecurity and IT risk management

Robust cybersecurity measures are necessary to protect sensitive customer information and maintain trust. As we expand our digital capabilities, the surface area for

potential cyberattacks is increasing. In response, we continue to strengthen our governance and metrics around patching and server management to proactively identify and address vulnerabilities.

We have faced challenges from evolving customer expectations and regulatory pressures. We are competing not only with traditional banks, but also with digital-only players, and customers now expect elevated digital journeys, driving constant innovation.

Data management and security We employ stringent data management and security systems that incorporate industry best practices around data encryption, multi-factor authentication, access control and conduct regular audits to ensure data integrity. The Bank's comprehensive Data Management Framework drives all aspects of data governance, including data quality, ownership, privacy and metadata management.

This year, we have made meaningful progress on data management

and privacy, having defined data privacy policies and procedures for proper use, sharing and handling

of customer data, especially when partnering with third parties. Next year, we will focus on implementing the most efficient technologies and processes to embed these policies effectively.

45 46

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

and Innovation continued

Awards and recognition

Our technology solutions like RAK Telemetry, Intelligent Document Processing Platform (IDPP), Microservices Platform and the Payments Platform were conferred more than 15 awards in 2025, including MENA Banking Excellence Awards, MEA Finance Banking Summit and Technology Awards, Global Finance's Innovators Award, MEA Business Achievement Awards and Infosys Finacle Innovation Awards. IDPP has featured as an industry-leading case study by both Gartner and Microsoft.

Future outlook

2026 will mark the final year of our four-year digital transformation strategy. During the year, we plan to launch revamped personal and business banking apps, as well as a new corporate banking website. We will also expand agentic AI capabilities and implement a new CRM platform by the end of the year.

Real-time data usage will be enhanced for credit decisioning, while core lending and Islamic banking systems will be upgraded to the latest versions.

We will continue to strengthen our foundational technology layers, from infrastructure and middleware to front-end experience, and maintain our investment in advanced technologies to achieve our goal of becoming the digital bank with a human touch.

The year to come will be an exciting conclusion to this strategic cycle, providing a strong foundation for the next phase of RAKBANK's evolution.

47

48

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

Enhancing

Overview

The UAE banking landscape continues to rapidly evolve, becoming more sophisticated, increasingly customer-centric and significantly more digital in compliance and fraud prevention. As regulators continue to raise the bar on customer protection and risk management, customer expectations have simultaneously shifted towards seamless digital experiences, simplicity and real-time access to services and support. RAKBANK is fundamentally transforming

how customer experience is delivered. Our focus is on delivering an awesome customer experience, which forms the core of who we are and how we operate, anchored in our vision to be digital with a human touch and driven by our aspiration to be the bank with the best customer experience in the UAE.

Leading through digitisation As demand for simple, intuitive and real-time digital banking continues to rise, RAKBANK has

accelerated its journey to deliver a comprehensive suite of everyday digital banking solutions to meet customers' evolving financial needs.

Additionally, the Bank continues to invest in building end-to-end digital journeys that are fast, easy,

personal and secure. Ultimately, our goal is to be where our customers are, both physically and digitally. We aim to strike a balance between the convenience of digital banking and the personalised assistance that customers seek during their banking journey.

Proactive monitoring and support To support the delivery of our Mission Zero strategy, aiming for zero errors, zero complaints and zero delays, RAKBANK has, since

2024, implemented proactive monitoring of customer KPIs, enabled through real-time dashboards built in-house across digital onboarding, transaction monitoring and service requests, a 24/7 command centre and a robust service recovery framework. This has enabled the Bank to identify and resolve customer issues and delays proactively.

Customer trust and security

As digital transactions become more prevalent, RAKBANK continues to prioritise robust security measures and transparent communication.

This includes proactive monitoring as well as adherence to CBUAE guidelines and global security standards such as PCI DSS to safeguard sensitive financial information.

Transparent communication Transparency is key to keeping customers informed and building long-term trust and loyalty.

RAKBANK ensures customers are clearly informed about their products throughout their lifecycle with the Bank, starting from onboarding and continuing throughout every stage of the relationship.

Any changes to product features, pricing or terms and conditions are clearly communicated, and well in advance, in full alignment with prescribed regulatory timelines.

Customer communication is delivered through multiple channels, including SMS, email and customised in-app push

notifications and banners, ensuring timely and effective reach and

is delivered in the customer's preferred language, in English or Arabic.

Handling customer complaints

49 50

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

Personal Banking Group

Overview

RAKBANK's Personal Banking Group (PBG) continued strong momentum throughout 2025, driven by enhanced customer engagement. Our active customer base grew 17% year-

to-date, supported by new product launches, strategic partnerships, the introduction of digital journeys and deeper relationships with our customers.

Key highlights

PBG's growth and customer engagement was driven mainly by the following enablers.

Digitisation of customer journeys Accelerating digital transformation to deliver faster, smarter and more intuitive journeys for our customers.

• 99% of financial transactions are executed digitally

• 93% of customer service requests are now digitised, a +7% growth YoY

• 83% of credit card applications and 90% of new account openings are initiated and decisioned digitally

• We are the first bank in UAE to launch fully digital personal loans onboarding journey

• We introduced a seamless digital subscription journey for Mutual Funds, strengthening our digital Wealth proposition

  Winning customer value proposition Committed to delivering differentiated value propositions that resonate with our customers.

• We launched subscription-based packages for our Everyday Banking customers, offering a suite of value-added services such as waived minimum balance requirements, free remittances and more

• We are the first conventional bank in UAE to provide digital assets (crypto) trading to our customer base, through our mobile banking app

• We launched Rai, our AI-powered assistant, enabling customers to seamlessly access and perform banking services using natural language

• We launched our premier credit card, Elevate, providing the best-in-class card experience, with a dedicated WhatsApp channel to create an engaging experience for the customers

• We introduced strategic card partnerships with Samsung and Apple's iSTYLE stores across the UAE. Through iSTYLE, we

  marked RAKBANK's first step into embedded finance, enabling customers to apply for our credit card while they shop at the store

• We opened two new world-class Elite Customer Centres

  - strategically located at Opus Tower in Dubai and Omnia Tower in Abu Dhabi - to deliver an exceptional banking experience for our Elite segment clients

• We also introduced a seamless international account opening experience for non-resident Elite clients, enabling remote onboarding without the need to visit the UAE

  Our moonshots continue to deliver measurable success, reinforcing our commitment to innovative growth.

  Protego: Our proprietary Digital Insurance Aggregator Platform

• Protego has doubled its customer base in 2025 - driven by a fully digitised customer engagement journey - and strengthened through new strategic partnerships

• We expanded our insurance portfolio by introducing Health Insurance, which is now conveniently available to customers through our mobile app alongside car, home and travel insurance

  Skiply: Our education and family app

• Skiply continues to reinforce its position as a leading solution

  in the education payments ecosystem, achieving 20% YoY growth in registered users and 24% YoY growth in payment volumes

• With 42 awards to its credit, Skiply continues to innovate by expanding service offerings and enhancing app features, making it a complete family app

  Microsegment: Financial inclusivity for the under-banked

  Our microsegment proposition, designed to advance financial inclusion for blue-collar workers in the UAE, continues to deliver

  significant value; processing wages for over 2.4 million cardholders, facilitating 593,000 salary-linked microloans and enabling 3.7 million remittance transactions.

  Deepening relationships with our customers

  RAKBANK's Consumer Banking NPS improved to third position from fifth last year, reflecting stronger customer satisfaction, driven by deeper engagement. By leveraging advanced AI and generative ML to deliver real-time, personalised value propositions.

  51 52

  
  
  

  RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

  Personal Banking Group

  continued

  Key drivers of performance PBG's financial performance in 2025 was driven by strong growth levers; enhanced productivity and stronger sales fuelled balance sheet expansion, which in turn accelerated income growth, mainly across CASA, Wealth, Cards and Payments business.

  Deposits momentum remained robust with +12% YoY growth in balance sheet, despite declining interest rates. The continued inflow of HNWIs, with strong investment momentum, drove wealth management income up by 34% YoY and AUM by +11%, while the strong economy boosted payments performance, with card spends increasing 11% YoY, Skiply transactions up 24% and merchant acquiring GAV +28% YoY.

  Challenges

  The UAE banking sector in 2025 continued its rapid evolution, shaped by intense competition, accelerating digital disruption and shifting client expectations. The emergence of fintech challengers and the rise of embedded finance have redefined traditional models, compelling banks to revisit credit

  decisioning frameworks and forge strategic partnerships. Concurrently, trends such as AI-driven personalisation, thematic investing and hybrid advisory solutions amplified the pressure

  to deliver differentiated customer experiences.

  For PBG, margin compression remained a significant challenge throughout the year, driven by increased competition and a sustained decline in interest rates that began in late 2024 and

  persisted through 2025. While earlier elevated rates supported deposit growth, the reversal in rate trends adversely impacted spreads and profitability. This was compounded by heightened competition from neo-banks, fintechs and non-banking entities offering agile,

  user-centric digital solutions. These dynamics necessitated accelerated innovation, reimagined pricing strategies and deeper customer engagement to protect margins.

  Opportunities and strategic goals

  Our 2026 strategy is anchored on six key priorities designed to strengthen growth, enhance customer value and accelerate digital transformation.

• Drive efficient balance sheet growth - focus on productivity and multi-product sales to optimise balance sheet expansion

• Accelerate active customer growth - deepen engagement, reduce attrition and strengthen relationships across segments

• Advance digital transformation and reimagine customer experience - accelerate digitisation to drive growth and engagement more efficiently, while transforming end-to-end customer journeys

• Deliver superior customer value - introduce well-crafted propositions and innovative products tailored to evolving customer needs

• Harness data and AI for deeper insights - deploy advanced analytics and AI/ML models to enhance customer understanding and provide personalised offerings

• Expand wealth management offerings - broaden the product suite and digitise wealth journeys to deliver an exclusive, premium experience

53

54

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

Business Banking Group

Overview

The Business Banking Group (BBG) delivered a strong financial and operational performance this year, marked by healthy growth on both sides of the balance sheet. Assets expanded across all key segments, exceeding AED 11 billion for the

first time, while liabilities registered double-digit growth to AED 26.5 billion, driven by improved customer acquisition,

enhanced digital offerings and deeper relationship penetration.

BBG net profit crossed the AED 1 billion mark for the second successive year despite a lower interest rate environment. Fee-based income also showed a robust growth to AED 350 million, driven by forex and fees on trade and commercial loans.

BBG plays a crucial role in achieving RAKBANK's strategy of accelerating the shift towards a digitally enabled operating model with a human touch. The ongoing digital transformation - through digital onboarding, straight through processing, digital lending and

a market-leading digital banking service - directly reduces cost of acquisition, improves efficiency and delivers a faster, more intuitive user experience. As we work towards making digital business banking

the primary interaction point for the majority of SMEs, RAKBANK can scale at a lower cost, leverage data for better decision-making and strengthen customer stickiness.

Highlights

In 2025, BBG was proud to receive the prestigious Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2025 as the UAE's Best Bank for SMEs. In addition, BBG won several other awards:

• SMEsouk Podcast (Bronze Award) - SME Banking Impact Awards 2025 at Qorus Global SME Banking Awards 2025

• Best Overall Bank for SMEs for Relationship Management Services at MEA Finance SME Business and Finance Summit

• Best SME Bank UAE at Global Business and Finance Magazine Awards 2025

• Innovative SME Finance Award at Accounting & Finance Awards 2025

• Exceptional Products/Services at MEA Business Achievement Awards 2025

Key drivers of performance The key drivers of BBG's financial performance included growth

in business liability and trade working capital solutions. Growth was further supported by a stable market environment and a prudent, well-governed risk and compliance policy framework.

In 2025, we introduced several new products and services, such as multi-partner and multi-signatory onboarding, pre-approved top-up loans, instant balance confirmation letters and RAK Token reset, payment collection via QR codes and payment links, as well as an invoicing facility.

Impact of digital transformation RAKBANK's SME segment is rapidly shifting towards a digitally enabled operating model with a human touch. The Bank's business account opening digital journey expanded beyond sole proprietors to multi-partners, leading to coverage of approximately 80% of personas.

The account opening approval turnaround time (TAT) accelerated to its quickest ever, with 2.86 days for simple profiles and 6.45 days for complex ones.

Digital is now responsible for almost all account and loan applications, as well as daily banking needs. UAE SMEs increasingly rely on mobile and online platforms for their banking activities, with physical interaction required only for complex services. As a result, digital banking now handles more than 99% of the financial transactions and over

80% of non-financial transactions. This broad migration to digital has significantly lowered the cost to serve, improved process efficiency and positioned digital business banking as the primary engagement channel for SMEs in the UAE.

The UAE Government has also played a pivotal role in accelerating digital transformation initiatives

by expanding access to public information and services via APIs. These APIs reduce manual documentation and strengthen

Know Your Business (KYB) and Know Your Customer (KYC) accuracy, leading to a significant reduction in onboarding and remediation efforts related to SMEs.

This proactive approach by the UAE Government is not only improving financial infrastructure, but also empowering the banks to deliver faster and cost-effective experience to SMEs.

Operating environment

The SME operating environment in the UAE remained dynamic and

increasingly competitive throughout the year. Market competition intensified as more banks and fintechs entered the SME space with aggressive pricing and simplified credit journeys. This trend is expected to continue with the launch of Open Finance, NPSS and other critical regulatory initiatives. At the same time, declining interest rate environment has encouraged many SMEs to revisit postponed capital expenditure, increase working capital lines and plan for new growth opportunities.

However, the external landscape presented notable headwinds. Global trade tensions, particularly the United States (US) tariff regime, introduced considerable uncertainty for UAE-based traders. For SMEs operating on thin margins or dependent on specific geographies, US tariffs and global

trade uncertainty posed challenges. Operational challenges within the domestic market also increased; finding the right talent at the right cost proved increasingly difficult

for SMEs and added pressure to operational capacity and cost structures.

Owing to these external and domestic challenges, a significant share of SMEs reported they were actively seeking new markets

and customer segments, as local competition intensified and certain industries reached saturation.

55 56

RAKBANK 2025 Annual Integrated Report Operational Review

Business Banking Group

continued

Expansion beyond the UAE has become a strategic priority for many firms looking to diversify risk and access higher-growth environments. However, the shifting global landscape - especially US tariffs and the availability of cheaper Chinese products - has reduced

the feasibility of expanding into some international markets, limiting options for SMEs already facing domestic competitive pressure.

Overall, while the environment offered meaningful tailwinds through lower borrowing costs and a resilient UAE economic foundation, SMEs continued to navigate a landscape shaped by heightened competition, shifting global trade dynamics and structural operational challenges.

Support for the UAE SME ecosystem

RAKBANK continued to showcase its role as a partner to SMEs through initiatives such as the SMEsouk podcast series and the SME Confidence Index, both of which provide SMEs with timely insight and practical knowledge. Our SMEsouk podcast has become a trusted platform where experts, entrepreneurs and industry specialists discuss real issues affecting UAE businesses - from business setup to taxation and credit, digital assets and branding.

The SMEsouk podcasts help SMEs make informed decisions in an increasingly complex environment. Complementing this, the SME Confidence Index offers data-driven visibility into

business sentiment, challenges and emerging opportunities, enabling the wider ecosystem to align with SME requirements and tap new opportunities while addressing challenges.

Together, these initiatives reinforce RAKBANK's commitment to empowering SMEs beyond

traditional banking, supporting their competitiveness and contribution to the UAE economy.

Opportunities and strategic goals

As RAKBANK celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2026, BBG expects to build on existing momentum to drive significant growth in

its asset and liability portfolios, while building a world-class digital experience for our customers.

With SMEs increasingly expecting speed, transparency and seamless digital interactions, the Bank aims to elevate platforms with intuitive interfaces, enhanced self-service features, contextual insights and instant fulfilment capabilities.

This next phase of digital transformation is designed to reduce friction, deepen customer engagement and position digital as the primary gateway for interaction with the Bank.

Growth will be supported by the launch of new value propositions tailored to the evolving needs

of SMEs across key sectors.

A dedicated focus on forex will further boost fee income,

particularly with the launch of a new currency pricing platform. Another strategic priority will be to increase cross-sell by leveraging stronger digital journeys and advanced data analytics. We also see a strong opportunity in the launch of new lending products and credit models that respond to the changing dynamics of the SME segment.

Armed with stronger digital platforms, smarter credit models and a sharp focus on customer value, BBG is positioned to unlock the next phase of sustainable, scalable growth.

57 58