Foreign investment in Kuwait’s listed banks fell 12.5% to about 4.535 billion dinars ($13.967 billion) at the end of September 2026, from about 5.182 billion dinars ($15.960 billion) at the end of 2025, Kuwaiti consultancy Al-Shall said in its weekly report on Saturday, October 17.
The decline was steeper than the fall in Boursa Kuwait’s banking sector index, which dropped about 2.7% over the same period, the report said, Al-Rai newspaper reported.
Foreign holdings were equal to about 14.37% of the banking sector’s market capitalization, down from about 16.01% at the end of 2025.
Banks make up about 60% of the exchange’s market capitalization and remain the sector that attracts the most indirect foreign investment, according to the report. The sector accounted for 27.7% of total trading value in the first nine months of 2026, the second-highest share on the exchange.
The foreign share of ownership fell at seven of the nine listed banks between the end of 2025 and the end of September.
About 96.9% of foreign investment in the sector was concentrated in five banks. National Bank of Kuwait led with about 1.957 billion dinars ($6.027 billion), followed by Kuwait Finance House with about 1.947 billion dinars ($5.996 billion) and Boubyan Bank with about 223.6 million dinars ($688.6 million).
Foreign investment in Gulf Bank stood at about 146.2 million dinars ($450.2 million), and in Warba Bank at about 121.3 million dinars ($373.6 million).
National Bank of Kuwait had the highest foreign ownership relative to its market value, at 25.05%. Kuwait Finance House followed at 13.10%, Gulf Bank at 10.47% and Kuwait International Bank at 9.68%.
Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait was the only bank where the foreign share rose, gaining 1.50 percentage points to about 8.94% from about 7.44%. Gulf Bank posted the largest drop, losing 3.23 points to about 10.47% from about 13.70%.
Al-Shall said foreign investors may have been affected by the intensity and length of the regional geopolitical events. They were the only investor group whose share sales exceeded their purchases, unlike their past behavior and that of local investors, which meant some selling and exits had taken place, the report said.
The consultancy described foreign ownership in the sector as relatively stable, with part of the decline reflecting the fall in the sector index.
