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Emirates NBD completes $2.75 billion RBL Bank deal, takes 60% stake

Dubai bank completes majority stake buy in RBL Bank through major capital infusion

Last updated: June 18, 2026 | 10:48

Nivetha Dayanand, Assistant Business Editor

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Emirates NBD and RBL Bank said the deal represents the largest foreign direct investment in India’s banking sector.

EmiratesNBD

Dubai: Emirates NBD has completed its acquisition of a majority stake in India’s RBL Bank through a primary capital infusion of about $2.75 billion, or nearly Rs260 billion, marking one of the largest cross-border banking deals in India.

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The transaction gives Emirates NBD 60 per cent of the expanded share capital of RBL Bank and strengthens the Dubai lender’s long-term presence in one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies.

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The deal was first announced on October 18, 2025, and has now closed after receiving the required regulatory approvals and meeting closing conditions.

Biggest foreign investment in Indian banking

The transaction was completed through a preferential issue of shares, alongside a mandatory open offer to RBL Bank’s public shareholders in line with Indian regulations.

Emirates NBD and RBL Bank said the deal represents the largest foreign direct investment in India’s banking sector, the largest equity fundraise in Indian banking, and the first acquisition of a majority stake in a profitable Indian bank by a foreign bank.

The investment is expected to strengthen RBL Bank’s balance sheet, improve its capital position and support its next phase of growth across corporate, retail and digital banking.

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“The successful completion of this landmark transaction reflects the strength of the strategic partnership between the UAE and India, built on decades of cooperation, mutual trust and shared economic ambitions," said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of Emirates NBD. "It also underscores the commitment of both nations’ leadership to strengthening trade, investment and financial ties. Through our partnership with RBL Bank, Emirates NBD is proud to support this vision and further reinforce its role as a trusted financial bridge between the UAE and India.”

Hesham Abdulla Al Qassim, Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Emirates NBD, said India remains central to the bank’s international strategy.

“This transaction marks a significant milestone for Emirates NBD and reinforces our long-term commitment to India. As one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies, India represents a key pillar of our international strategy. Through our partnership with RBL Bank, we are well-positioned to deepen cross-border connectivity and support trade, investment and financial flows between India and the wider region.”

RBL Bank’s established franchise gives Emirates NBD access to a broader Indian banking platform, with universal banking products and a wide distribution network across the country.

Nivetha DayanandAssistant Business Editor

Nivetha Dayanand is Assistant Business Editor at Gulf News, covering aviation, financial markets and commodities. A business and financial journalist with a strong interest in multimedia storytelling, she regularly takes complex financial and economic subjects beyond the written word, producing explainer videos that make them easier for a wider audience to understand. Nivetha has interviewed senior policymakers, business leaders and global financial figures both on and off camera. Her past guests include UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Khaled bin Alwaleed Al Saud, a member of the House of Saud and the founder and CEO of KBW Ventures, Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund and Indian ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and N. Chandrababu Naidu. She has also hosted and moderated panels, conferences and awards shows, bringing her newsroom experience to live conversations on business, finance and the economy. An Erasmus Mundus journalism alum, Nivetha is drawn to stories that affect people directly and to reporting that gives a platform to voices that might otherwise go unheard. She was among the first journalists to speak to Petrofac employees in the UAE about unpaid salaries, broke the news of the planned demolition of Dubai’s well-known “Toyota Building”, and helped set the record straight on widely circulated claims that a giant replica of the Moon was coming to Dubai. More recently, her exclusive interview with EDGE Group CEO Hamad Al Marar revealed how the UAE-based defence group deployed its systems along the country’s shore border and established a geofence around the UAE within 48 hours of the February 28 escalation. Prior to joining Gulf News, Nivetha worked at ITP Media, where she helped launch Finance Middle East, a new publication covering the region’s financial sector. Her role spanned reporting and editing, video production, interviews and events. Across print, digital, and video, she focuses on finding the people behind business stories and explaining why those stories matter to the audience reading or watching them.