The winners of the MENA Banking Excellence Awards 2026: Retail, Digital and SME Banking have been announced, with banks and financial institutions from 11 countries recognised for outstanding performance across the Middle East and North Africa (Mena).

The awards honour excellence in retail banking, digital banking, payments, customer experience, financial inclusion, Islamic finance and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) banking. Winners were selected through an independent judging process involving senior industry experts and banking specialists.

The breadth of this year’s results reflects how competition in the region has fragmented across multiple fronts, rather than concentrating on a single theme. Progress is no longer defined by digital transformation alone: the strongest entries showed banks combining technology, product design, service delivery and leadership to address specific customer and business needs – whether through financial inclusion, improved customer experience, SME support or tailored propositions.

As competition intensifies, the results suggest institutions are increasingly being recognised not simply for launching new initiatives, but for demonstrating relevance, strong execution and measurable impact in the markets they serve.

“What stands out this year isn’t any single trend; it’s how many fronts banks across 11 countries are now expected to compete on at once,” said Sarah Rizvi, events and editorial director – Banking & Finance at MEED. “The institutions recognised here aren’t just investing in digital or SME banking; they are proving it changes outcomes for customers and businesses. That’s a higher bar than the market was setting even two years ago.”

The MENA Banking Excellence Awards form part of MEED’s wider Banking and Finance portfolio, which brings together industry leaders through awards programmes, executive forums, research and editorial coverage focused on the future of banking in the region. The full list of winners is available here.

Congratulations to all winners, highly commended institutions and shortlisted organisations recognised in the Retail, Digital & SME edition of the Mena Banking Excellence Awards 2026.