Emirates NBD earned 6.4 billion dirhams in the third quarter, unchanged from the second, as the Dubai lender's first full quarter with India's RBL Bank on its books inflated loans and deposits while higher costs and Turkish provisions kept a lid on profit.

For investors in Asia, the numbers are the clearest look yet at what Gulf money buys when it goes into Indian banking. Emirates NBD paid about $2.8 billion for 60% of RBL Bank, according to Enterprise, a Gulf business news service. RBL was consolidated for only 13 days of the second quarter, so the July to September period was the first to carry it in full.

RBL Bank adds a third of Emirates NBD's loan growth

Gross loans at the group reached 833 billion dirhams at the end of September, up 27% since the start of the year, Khaleej Times reported. Stripping out RBL Bank, growth was 18%, which means the Indian unit accounted for roughly a third of the increase. Deposits rose 19% this year to 935 billion dirhams, or 12% without RBL.

Nine-month net profit rose 2% from a year earlier to 19.3 billion dirhams. Total income for the period reached a record 42.2 billion dirhams, up 15%, with net interest income up 14% to 29.4 billion dirhams.

The income gains did not reach the bottom line. Operating expenses rose 19% in the first nine months to 13.3 billion dirhams, and third-quarter costs jumped 18% from the second quarter. The quarterly cost-to-income ratio climbed to 34.2% from 30.7%.

Credit charges also turned. The group booked 2.1 billion dirhams of impairment allowances in the first nine months, mainly provisions at its Turkish subsidiary DenizBank, against a net write-back a year earlier. A 2.6 billion dirham hyperinflation adjustment linked to Turkey also held back pre-tax profit, which rose 4% to 24.3 billion dirhams.

Returns slipped. Net interest margin fell to 3.24% from 3.43%, and return on tangible equity dropped to 18.1% from 20.9%. The common equity tier 1 ratio stood at 13.4%, down from 14.4% at the end of 2025.

Group Chief Financial Officer Patrick Sullivan said the quarterly pre-tax profit of 8 billion dirhams reflected “consistent performance” through the year, according to Khaleej Times.

What RBL Bank looks like under Gulf ownership

The Indian side of the story is moving faster. RBL Bank, which now describes itself in filings as a subsidiary of Emirates NBD, said on Oct. 12 that net profit for the quarter ended Sept. 30 rose 170% from a year earlier to 4.82 billion rupees.

Net advances grew 42% to 1.42 trillion rupees and deposits rose 34% to 1.56 trillion rupees, the bank said in a press release filed with the National Stock Exchange of India. Net interest income rose 37%, and the net interest margin was 4.61%, well above the parent group's.

The growth tilted toward safer lending. Wholesale advances rose 56% and secured retail loans 52%, while unsecured retail lending grew only 6%. The gross nonperforming loan ratio fell to 1.02% from 2.32% a year earlier.

Capital is still ample after the Emirates NBD injection, though it is being put to work. Total capital adequacy fell to 30.1% at the end of September from 33.3% three months earlier, and the CET1 ratio to 29.0% from 32.2%. Chief Executive R. Subramaniakumar said in the release that the bank had raised significant foreign currency nonresident deposits, giving it more room to grow.

RBL's board allotted Emirates NBD shares worth about 260.2 billion rupees on June 18 through a preferential issue at 280 rupees each, giving the Dubai bank 60% of the enlarged capital, PSU Connect reported. Five Emirates NBD nominees, including Sullivan, joined RBL's board the same day, subject to shareholder approval. On Oct. 16 the Reserve Bank of India approved folding Emirates NBD's Indian branches into RBL, effective Dec. 1, Khaleej Times reported.

Gulf capital and India's bank shake-up

Gulf money is not alone in buying into Indian lenders. India has also cleared Fairfax's takeover of IDBI Bank, another case of foreign capital buying control of a listed Indian lender.

For Emirates NBD, India adds a higher-margin loan book to a group that also runs DenizBank in Turkey and agreed this summer to buy HSBC's retail business in Egypt, Enterprise reported. The bank's investment banking arm has worked on more than 70 debt capital markets deals this year raising over $60 billion across 13 countries, Khaleej Times said.

The bank expects the UAE economy to keep growing on domestic demand, population growth and credit expansion despite regional tensions, while tourism, trade and logistics activity remains moderate, the bank said in its results release. It gave no specific earnings guidance.

The next concrete step comes on Dec. 1, when Emirates NBD's Indian branches become RBL Bank branches, bringing the group's Indian operations together inside the listed lender.