Listed banks post Rs168bn profit for 2Q2026
KARACHI: Pakistan’s listed banks reported profitability of Rs168 billion in second quarter of this calendar year (2Q2026), flat YoY and down 4 percent QoQ. This takes first half of this year (1H2026) earnings to Rs342 billion, flat YoY. According Topline Securities, on a QoQ basis, the decline was driven by a 7 percent increase in non-interest expense to Rs361 billion and a 2 percent decline in…
Pakistan's listed banks earned a profit of Rs168 billion in the second quarter of 2026, marking flat year-over-year growth and a 4 percent decrease quarter-over-quarter. The first half of 2026 saw earnings totaling Rs342 billion, also flat year-over-year. The decline in quarterly earnings was primarily due to a 7 percent increase in non-interest expenses to Rs361 billion and a 2 percent drop in Net Interest Income (NII) to Rs527 billion.
Samba Bank, Soneri Bank, National Bank, and Habib Metropolitan Bank experienced declines of 16-31 percent year-over-year, while only a few banks, such as JS Bank, Bank of Punjab, Bank Alfalah, and Askari Bank, recorded positive YoY growth in NII, ranging from 6-24 percent. Non-interest income increased by 23 percent year-over-year and 4 percent quarter-over-quarter, driven by higher foreign exchange income.
However, non-interest expense rose by 15 percent year-over-year and 7 percent quarter-over-quarter. The sector's cost-to-income ratio stood at 51.3 percent, up from 48.0 percent in the previous quarter and 45.9 percent in the same quarter of the previous year. The provision reversal for 2Q2026 was Rs6.2 billion, down from Rs8 billion in 2Q2025 and Rs1.8 billion in 1Q2026, primarily driven by a Rs3.8 billion reversal by UBL.
Excluding this reversal, the sector reversal was Rs2.4 billion. UBL led the sector with earnings of Rs37.5 billion in 2Q2026, followed by MEBL at Rs26.2 billion, Habib Bank at Rs18.4 billion, NBP at Rs16.6 billion, and MCB at Rs15 billion. Among the banks, JSBL showed the highest YoY earnings growth at 704 percent, followed by AKBL at 91 percent, UBL at 31 percent, and BAFL at 27 percent.
In contrast, Bank of Khyber, Standard Chartered, Habib Metropolitan Bank, and NBP saw declines of 21-74 percent year-over-year. Bank Makramah reported a loss of Rs3.9 billion. Most banks maintained their quarterly dividend payouts, with MEBL increasing its dividend payout to Rs8.0 per share and MCB announcing a dividend per share of Rs9.0.
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