Casablanca – Bank of Africa recorded group net income attributable to shareholders of about $256 million in the first half of 2026, marking a 10% increase from the same period a year earlier. The result came as the Moroccan banking group expanded lending and deposits, increased fee and interest income and reduced credit-risk charges, although weaker market activity and higher technology-related expenses limited the growth of operating income.

The bank’s consolidated net banking income reached approximately $1.08 billion during the six months to the end of June, up 1% year on year. The modest increase in total banking income reflected different trends across the group’s business lines. Revenue from core banking activities strengthened, with net fee income rising 10% and net interest income increasing 7%. This growth partly offset a 37% decline in revenue from market activities, which had benefited from an exceptionally strong performance in the first half of 2025.

The headline increase in net income also needs to be considered alongside a change in the group’s consolidation scope. Bank of Africa increased its ownership of BOA Holding in Luxembourg during the first half of 2026, raising its stake from 72.41% to 81.82% following the acquisition of shares previously held by a development finance institution. On a constant-scope basis, the increase in group net income was 5%, compared with the reported 10% growth.

The distinction is relevant because it separates the effect of the change in ownership structure from the underlying development of the group’s earnings. The reported net income reached about $256 million, compared with roughly $232 million in the first half of 2025, while the constant-scope comparison points to a more moderate increase in underlying earnings.

Core banking activities offset weaker market revenue

The first-half figures show a shift in the composition of Bank of Africa’s revenue. The decline in market-related income created a significant drag on consolidated banking income after the particularly strong performance recorded during the previous year’s first half.

Core activities nevertheless continued to expand. Net interest income increased 7%, reflecting the contribution from lending activities, while net fee income grew 10%. Fee-generating services therefore provided an additional source of revenue at a time when market operations were contributing less to the group’s income.

This combination helped keep consolidated net banking income slightly above its level a year earlier. The result also indicates that the group’s earnings were not dependent on the performance of a single activity during the period, as lending, deposits and fee-based services continued to generate growth.

The increase in operating expenses was more pronounced. General operating costs rose 8%, largely because of investments in information technology and the transformation of the bank’s information systems in Morocco. The consolidated cost-to-income ratio consequently increased during the period. One set of published figures places the ratio at about 48.4%, compared with 44.7% a year earlier, while another reporting of the results gives a lower comparative figure. The difference appears to reflect the treatment and presentation of the underlying financial data, but both sets of figures point to higher operating costs during the period.

The increase in technology spending comes as banks across Morocco continue to invest in digital services, information systems and operational infrastructure. For Bank of Africa, these expenditures affected short-term operating efficiency while forming part of a broader transformation of its information systems.

Lower risk charges support profitability

One of the clearest positive factors in the first-half results was the reduction in the cost of risk. At group level, the cost of risk fell 16% to approximately $144 million. The consolidated cost-of-risk ratio declined to 1%, compared with 1.5% in June 2025. The improvement reduced the amount of earnings absorbed by provisions and credit-related charges.

The improvement was also visible in the Moroccan banking operation. The bank’s cost-of-risk ratio in Morocco declined to 0.8%, compared with 1.3% a year earlier, while the coverage ratio increased to 68.4% from 66.8% at the end of December 2025. The reported figures indicate that previous efforts to address problem assets helped bring risk charges closer to normalized levels.

The lower cost of risk was particularly relevant because it helped counterbalance weaker market revenue and rising operating expenses. With fewer earnings allocated to credit-risk provisions, a larger portion of operating income could flow through to net profit.

At the same time, the group’s overall coverage ratio improved to 70.5%, compared with 69.5% at the end of 2025. Shareholders’ equity attributable to the group increased 6% to approximately $3.47 billion.

Loans and deposits continue to expand

Bank of Africa’s balance sheet also grew during the first six months of the year. Consolidated total assets increased 5% to approximately $47.4 billion.

Customer loans increased 4% to about $25.1 billion, while customer deposits rose 4% to approximately $29.6 billion. The simultaneous increase in lending and deposits indicates continued expansion of the group’s banking activity, with deposits providing an important funding base for the growth of its loan portfolio.

The Moroccan parent bank recorded an even stronger increase in lending. Customer loans, excluding non-performing loans, rose about 6% between the end of December 2025 and June 2026, reaching approximately $16.3 billion. Customer deposits, excluding repurchase agreements, increased about 5% to roughly $18.4 billion.

These developments came as credit demand continued to evolve in Morocco. Financing needs from companies, households and investment-related activities remain an important component of banking-sector activity, while banks are also competing to attract and retain deposits.

The growth in Bank of Africa’s loan portfolio therefore provides an important counterweight to the weaker contribution from market activities. More lending can support interest income, although it also requires continued monitoring of credit quality and provisioning.

Moroccan operations remain central to earnings

Bank of Africa’s Moroccan operation generated standalone net banking income of approximately $548 million in the first half of 2026, down 3% from a year earlier. The decline was mainly associated with the weaker performance of market activities after the unusually strong contribution recorded in the first half of 2025.

Core banking activities partially compensated for the decline. Net interest income increased 5%, while net fee income also rose, according to the group’s reported figures.

Operating expenses at the Moroccan bank increased 6% to about $206 million. The increase reflected substantial investments in information technology linked to the bank’s information-system transformation program. Excluding depreciation and related allocations, the increase in expenses was more limited, at 3.6%.

The Moroccan bank’s cost-to-income ratio consequently increased to 38.4% at the end of June from 35.1% a year earlier. Gross operating income declined 8% to approximately $340 million.

Despite these pressures, standalone net income increased 4% to approximately $192 million. The improvement was supported by the significant reduction in risk charges and the continued contribution of core banking activities.

African operations add another source of revenue

Bank of Africa’s international operations remain an important part of the group’s business model. BOA Holding’s net banking income in Africa reached about $520 million during the first half of 2026, compared with roughly $492 million a year earlier, representing growth of 6%.

The increase was primarily supported by an 11% rise in net fee income. The performance indicates that fee-generating activities continued to provide support to the group’s African operations while market conditions differed across the countries where the banking group operates.

The group operates across a broad African network, meaning that its consolidated performance reflects developments in several banking markets rather than Morocco alone. Differences in economic activity, interest rates, credit demand and financial-market conditions across those markets can therefore affect the composition of group earnings.

A larger balance sheet with higher technology costs

The first-half figures present two parallel developments within Bank of Africa. On one side, the group expanded its balance sheet, increased loans and deposits, strengthened fee and interest income and reduced the cost of risk. On the other, market-related revenue fell sharply from its elevated level in the previous year, while technology and transformation spending increased operating costs.

The result was a 10% rise in reported group net income to about $256 million, although the increase was 5% when measured on a constant consolidation scope.

The distinction between these two growth rates is important when assessing the first-half performance. The change in ownership of BOA Holding contributed to the reported consolidation perimeter, while the constant-scope figure provides a comparison that excludes this structural effect.

The bank’s balance sheet growth also provides an indication of the direction of its commercial activity. With consolidated loans reaching about $25.1 billion and customer deposits close to $29.6 billion, both sides of the balance sheet expanded at similar rates during the period.

For the remainder of 2026, the evolution of interest income, fee income, market operations, credit quality and operating expenses will determine how the first-half trends develop. The level of technology investment will also remain relevant to the bank’s expenses, while the lower cost of risk provides a different earnings dynamic from that seen in previous periods.

Bank of Africa’s first-half results thus combine higher underlying activity in lending and fee-based services with a weaker contribution from market operations. The group also entered the second half with a larger balance sheet, higher shareholders’ equity and improved coverage indicators. These figures provide the financial base from which the bank will continue its Moroccan and African operations during the remainder of 2026.