DUBAI - First Abu Dhabi Bank FAB.AD reported a 22% increase in fourth-quarter net profit on Wednesday, driven by growth in its operating income amid "sustained business momentum" and rising non-interest income.

The UAE's largest lender by assets reported a net profit of 5.1 billion dirhams ($1.39 billion) for the last three months of 2025, beating analysts' expectations of 4.9 billion dirhams, according to mean estimates compiled by LSEG.

FAB, whose top shareholder is sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, proposed a cash dividend of 80 fils per share.

UAE banks have benefited recently from rising credit demand as regional governments invest in sectors such as tourism and infrastructure to diversify their economies beyond oil revenues.

"The composition of earnings continued to evolve positively, with a higher contribution from non-funded income and steady delivery across business lines and geographies," CFO Lars Kramer said in a statement.

FAB's 2025 net profit soared to a record 21.1 billion dirhams, as revenues were boosted by a 36% jump in non-interest income.

Loans and advances grew by 17% to 616 billion dirhams in 2025, while customer deposits were up 7% at 841 billion dirhams, bringing total assets to 1.4 trillion dirhams at of the end of December.

($1=3.6721 UAE dirham)

(Reporting by Federico Maccioni; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)