Concept
SNB Private Banking is a private-banking segment within Retail Banking at The Saudi National Bank (SNB / AlAhli), the largest bank in Saudi Arabia — not a separate legal entity. Clients' investments and trading are executed via SNB Capital. Private-banking branches operate in Riyadh, Jeddah, Makkah and Al Khobar, according to published reports. No dedicated head of private banking is publicly named; the retail business group is headed by Saud Bajbair, according to published reports.
History and evolution
- 26 December 1953 — Royal Decree No. 3737 founds the National Commercial Bank, the first Saudi bank.
- 1955 — a Citibank branch opens, starting the Samba lineage.
- 1980 — Saudi American Bank is created in the Saudization of foreign banks.
- 1996 — an independent Shariah Board is established.
- 1997 — the bank becomes a joint stock company.
- 1999 — Saudi American Bank merges with United Saudi Bank; 2003 — renamed Samba Financial Group.
- 2007 — NCB Capital is established.
- 2014 — IPO on Tadawul.
- 1 April 2021 — the NCB + Samba merger is completed, forming the Saudi National Bank (~US$ 15.3bn deal, the Gulf's third-largest bank at the time); NCB Capital is rebranded SNB Capital.
- September 2024 — launch of the NEO digital bank.
- February 2025 — acquisition of the SRC mortgage portfolio (~US$ 907m).
- January 2026 — SNB Capital Market Access Services for foreign investors after the CMA liberalised the main market (1 February 2026); February 2026 — SNB Capital–Investcorp strategic partnership.
The Credit Suisse episode: in November 2022 SNB invested CHF 1.4bn (~US$ 1.5bn) for 9.9% of Credit Suisse as anchor investor; in March 2023 the UBS rescue converted the stake into ~0.5% of UBS Group; the loss was ~80% (~US$ 1.2bn). SNB stated the investment was under 0.5% of its total assets with nil regulatory-capital impact; the chairman resigned on 27 March 2023 after his remarks triggered the CS share collapse; July 2023 reports said SNB had wanted to raise the stake toward ~40% but was blocked by the Swiss regulator. The size of the residual UBS holding is not disclosed today — unverified.
Regulation
The Saudi National Bank is a Saudi joint stock company (Tadawul: 1180), supervised by SAMA, with the CMA overseeing securities. Group Chairman is Saeed Mohammed Al-Ghamdi (since 27 March 2023, appointed after Ammar Al Khudairy resigned over his Credit Suisse remarks). Group CEO is Tareq Abdulrahman Al Sadhan (effective 1 May 2024; previously Riyad Bank CEO and ex-SAMA Deputy Governor for Supervision). SNB Capital CEO is Rashed I. Sharif, according to published reports.
Compliance (per the 2025 Annual Report penalty disclosure): SAMA penalties on SNB in 2025 — 41 penalties totalling SAR 84.65m (32 supervisory-instruction violations SAR 66.5m; 7 customer-protection SAR 16.94m; 2 AML/CFT due-diligence SAR 1.2m); 2024 — 43 penalties totalling SAR 16.66m. No CMA enforcement action against SNB/SNB Capital was found in reviewed sources.
Source of wealth
Client wealth originates from merchant and industrial families, real-estate fortunes, government-linked business elites and professionals; Vision 2030 keeps expanding the affluent base. For verifying the source of funds, see the dedicated article.
Who it serves
Wealthy clients in Saudi Arabia who need a dedicated relationship manager, premium infrastructure and Shariah-compliant investment products inside the country's largest banking group.
Services
Dedicated relationship manager, 24/7 concierge, private-banking lounges; Shariah-compliant products (independent Shariah Board since 1996); Khayrat structured deposits with capital-protection options; FX products; diversified mutual funds; credit facilities to support investment activities — including lombard lending: the private-banking financing book stood at SAR 31.8bn net at end-2025 (vs SAR 47.3bn at end-2024). Premium cards (Mastercard World Elite / Visa Infinite Privilege, fee waived for PB clients). No trust, estate or family-office offering is advertised (in the Saudi context inheritance is governed by Sharia courts) — this is an absence of a published offering.
Entities
| Jurisdiction | Legal entity | Form and supervision | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saudi Arabia | The Saudi National Bank | Joint stock company (Tadawul: 1180); SAMA, CMA for securities | Head bank; private banking within retail |
| Saudi Arabia | SNB Capital Company | CMA-licensed: asset management, wealth management, securities, investment banking | Executes client investments and trading |
| UAE (DIFC) | SNB Capital (DIFC) Ltd | DFSA category 3A licence | International investment services |
| Bahrain, UAE, Qatar, Singapore | SNB branches | Wholesale branches; MAS wholesale licence since June 2019 | Wholesale banking, not PB booking centres |
| Türkiye, Pakistan | Türkiye Finans Katılım Bankası (67.03%); Samba Bank Ltd | Subsidiary banks | Regional group presence |
| China, South Korea | Representative offices in Shanghai and Seoul | Representative offices | Asian market links |
Strengths
Group scale for FY2025: total assets SAR 1.21 trillion (~US$ 323bn, +10%); net income SAR 25.0bn (+18%); ~15m customers; 481 KSA branches; the largest bank in Saudi Arabia; PIF owns ~37%, according to published reports; ratings Moody's Aa3 / S&P A / Fitch A (stable). Private-banking AUM is not disclosed separately — the reference point is SNB Capital's total AUM of SAR 294.3bn at December 2025 (the largest in Saudi Arabia, 22% of capital-market AUM; self-described as the largest Sharia-compliant asset manager globally).
Where it falls short
No published trust, estate or family-office offering; overseas branches are wholesale, not private-banking booking centres; the entry minimum is not published and segment AUM is not disclosed, so orientation relies on the adjacent Wessam and Elite tiers.
SNB Private Banking is above all access to the infrastructure of the Kingdom's largest bank: Shariah-compliant products, SNB Capital's platforms and a dense domestic network, with limited public transparency on the segment's own thresholds and metrics.
Q/A
What minimum is required for SNB Private Banking?
No official minimum is published: access is by invitation and through a relationship manager. SAR 5–10m figures circulating online are unverified; the official ladder below PB starts at Wessam Gold with a SAR 500,000 deposit.
How are deposits protected at SNB?
The Depositors Protection Fund (DPF) administered by SAMA covers SAR 200,000 per person per bank, aggregating all currencies. SAMA says this fully covers over 97% of depositors.
Does the bank offer trusts and a family office?
No trust, estate-planning or family-office offering is published. In Saudi Arabia, inheritance matters are governed by Sharia courts.
How did SNB's Credit Suisse investment end?
The 9.9% stake bought in November 2022 for CHF 1.4bn became ~0.5% of UBS Group after the March 2023 UBS rescue; the loss was around 80%. SNB stated there was no regulatory-capital impact.
Who executes private-banking clients' investments?
SNB Capital Company — the group's CMA-licensed subsidiary with AUM of SAR 294.3bn at December 2025, the largest asset manager in Saudi Arabia.