Euromoney hosted its prestigious Islamic Finance Awards and Awards for Excellence Middle East dinner on Tuesday, 21 May, at the Al Habtoor Palace in Dubai. The ceremony, presented by entertainer Ben Hanlin, brought together the region’s most influential banking and finance leaders to recognise outstanding achievement across the industry.
In his opening remarks, Patrick Cooke, Euromoney’s head of Middle East and Africa, noted the distinctive economic outlook in the Gulf region. “While much of the world is busy managing risk, this region is embracing opportunity,” he said. “The Gulf has moved from exporting oil to exporting ambition.”
Award highlights
Emirates NBD claimed the coveted title of Middle East’s best bank for 2025, thanks to its prowess across multiple business lines and countries, which translated into a profit-before-tax growth of 15% year-on-year to a record Dh27.1 billion ($7.38 billion). The bank also secured the Middle East’s best bank for ESG award, having facilitated $11.9 billion in sustainable finance, 39.6% of its $30 billion by 2030 target.
HSBC was once again recognised as Middle East’s best investment bank, demonstrating continued dominance in debt and equity capital markets across the region with landmark deals such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s SAR-denominated sukuk and bond buyback, and a GBP-denominated bond for PIF.
Wio Bank was named the Middle East’s best digital bank, impressing with its rapid expansion of its Wio Business and Wio Personal platforms. Meanwhile, Emirates Islamic Bank secured the world’s best Islamic digital bank award for its exceptional growth and product expansion, including its flagship EI+ app.
Other notable winners included Arab Bank, the Middle East’s best bank for corporate responsibility for its far-reaching social-impact initiatives, and Mashreq, which took home the award for Middle East’s best bank for large corporates. Standard Chartered Saadiq was crowned the world’s best islamic bank for 2025, while Bank Syariah Indonesia received the world’s best islamic bank for ESG award.
Full results and photos
Check the full list of Awards for Excellence Middle East winners to learn more about what makes them the best in their fields. And the Islamic Finance Awards results and winner profiles can be found here.
For a taste of the evening’s celebration, visit our photo gallery.
Curious about our accreditation programmes? Register your interest for next year’s Awards for Excellence or contact Alex Pang, head of engagement, to learn more about our awards.
