Fourteenth Annual CEEMEA Financials Symposium: Key takeaways from management meetings

CEEMEA banks highlight resilience despite an uncertain backdrop. Management teams across CEEMEA remained broadly positive on the outlook despite geopolitical uncertainty. In the UAE, banks continue to see robust loan growth supported by the investment and capex cycle, despite funding cost pressures. Saudi banks highlighted improving liquidity conditions and more rational competition, supporting margins. In CEE, volume growth is expected to offset rate-related headwinds, while Turkish banks expect improving operating conditions as monetary normalization continues. Investor feedback was the strongest on UAE banks, particularly Abu Dhabi names, supported by attractive growth prospects, improving capital-market activity and confidence around capital adequacy. By contrast, discussions about Saudi Arabia remained more balanced, with investors focused on funding dynamics, the pace of margin recovery and the sustainability of sector loan growth. CEE banks continue to attract significant invest