First Abu Dhabi Bank

Universal bank · Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

First Abu Dhabi Bank is the largest bank in the UAE by assets, formed in 2017 from the merger of NBAD and FGB. It reported total assets of AED 1.40 trillion and net profit of AED 21.1 billion for 2025. The bank operates in 20 markets across five continents, with branches in London, New York, Singapore, Hong Kong and India and a subsidiary in Egypt. Business accounts start at an AED 10,000 minimum monthly balance with an AED 250 monthly maintenance fee. It is the fiat custody partner for the DDSC dirham stablecoin authorised by the UAE central bank in 2026.

Legal name: First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC
Regulated by: Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), FCA/PRA (UK branch), HKMA (Hong Kong branch), QFCRA (Qatar, enforcement action)
Licence confirmed: yes, on a regulator's own list
Established: 2017
Website: www.bankfab.com

Scores, 0 to 10

9.5Middle East & Gulf

Largest UAE bank with AED 1.40 trillion assets and operations in KSA, Egypt, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Libya and Iraq. · source

9.0Financial strength & stability

Rated Aa3/AA-/AA- with stable outlooks and net profit of AED 21.1 billion in 2025. · source

8.0Trade, manufacturing & import-export

Letters of credit, guarantees, supply chain finance and dynamic discounting through a 20-market network. · source

7.0Cross-border payments, FX and multi-currency accounts

Business Basic account offers AED plus USD, GBP, JPY and EUR, with SWIFT across 20 markets; margins are not published. Global Transaction Banking covers cash management, supply chain finance and guarantees across 20 markets. · source

7.0Customer satisfaction

FAB Mobile app rated 4.6 out of 5 from 8.7K ratings on the US App Store. · source

7.0Business cards (Visa, Mastercard)

Mastercard commercial cards ONYX and Silver (credit) and World Debit Business, applied for through the FAB Business Portal; fees, FX markup and virtual cards are not stated on the page. · source

6.5Stablecoins (USDC, USDT and others)

FAB, IHC and Sirius got central bank approval on 11 February 2026 to put the dirham-backed DDSC live for institutional and government use, with FAB customers to access it through approved platforms, but FAB itself offers no stablecoin accounts or payouts and distribution runs through partners. · source

5.5Online businesses: e-commerce and SaaS

Merchant Account product exists with AED 10,000 minimum balance and AED 250 fall-below fee. Business accounts in AED, USD, GBP, JPY and EUR and a business portal, but no API, Stripe integration or startup product on the business banking pages. · source

5.5Foreign-owned & non-resident companies

Business Basic, Advantage and Preferred accounts need AED 10,000 to 500,000 minimum balances and the Business Call Account is open to UAE residents and non-residents; no remote onboarding path for foreign-incorporated companies is described. · source

5.0Latin America, Africa & South Asia

Egypt subsidiary FABMISR plus presence in Brazil, India, Libya and Iraq, mostly for corporate clients. · source

5.0Crypto-friendly bank

No published policy for onboarding crypto firms, but FAB is a named issuer partner of the DDSC dirham stablecoin. · source

5.0Fast digital onboarding

Basic account needs AED 10,000 minimum balance and documents; typical opening time is not published. · source

5.0On-ramp: buy crypto with fiat

UAE corporate advisers list FAB among banks that selectively onboard VARA-licensed firms with high balances and 2 to 8 weeks of enhanced due diligence, but FAB publishes no policy of its own, so this rests on secondary sources. · source

5.0Off-ramp: crypto to fiat in a business account

The same advisers describe FAB taking established, licensed crypto firms case by case; no FAB page on accepting exchange proceeds or source-of-funds rules was found, so evidence is thin and secondary. · source

4.5United Kingdom

London branch opened in 1977 and offers global transaction banking to corporates, not SME current accounts. · source

4.5Asia-Pacific (SG, HK, AU, JP, KR)

Presence in Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, India, Malaysia (Labuan), Indonesia and South Korea for corporate flows. · source

4.5Fintech companies that need a partner bank

FAB was one of eight launch participants of the Aani instant payments platform in October 2023; no public safeguarding programme. · source

4.0Europe (EU, EEA, Switzerland)

Branches in France and a private bank in Geneva serve corporate and wealth clients only. · source

4.0United States

New York presence is part of a 20-market wholesale network for corporate clients. · source

4.0Lowest fees

Basic account costs AED 250 per month plus AED 200 per month for online banking and AED 100 fall-below fee. · source

4.0Best interest on business balances

Business Call Account pays interest from an AED 10,000 minimum, but no rate is published. · source

4.0Startups & VC-backed companies

Startups are handled as SMEs with AED 10,000 minimum balance and AED 250 monthly fee. · source

3.5High-risk verticals (iGaming, cannabis, adult, forex)

No prohibited-industries list for business accounts is published on the business banking pages; scored conservatively. · source

1.5Accept crypto payments

FAB has no crypto acceptance product for merchants; DDSC received a central bank no-objection in July 2026 for distribution through VARA-regulated exchanges, which may later reach merchant payments, but no exchange or merchant scheme was named. · source

1.0Crypto wallet and custody for a business

FAB offers no crypto custody; its February 2026 stablecoin release says DDSC will reach FAB customers through separate approved platforms, and no FAB crypto wallet or custody service was found, checked September 2026. · source

1.0Bitcoin

FAB's digital asset activity centres on the DDSC stablecoin, and no bitcoin trading, custody or ETP offer for business clients was found, checked September 2026. · source

1.0Ethereum

No ether trading, custody or staking at FAB was found; DDSC runs on ADI Chain, not a FAB ether service, checked September 2026. · source

Sources

Built on public information and the BankStore team's own aggregated experience; no confidential client or partner data. Bank Index and BankStore are not banks. This is information, not financial advice.