Update of 7 November 2026: see Corrections and versions
1. Definition
Demand deposits are the sums customers leave in their current accounts and can withdraw at any time. They differ from savings deposits and term deposits, placed for a set period or against interest.
Demand deposits pay little or nothing: they are among a bank's cheapest sources of funding. Their share of deposits enters the cost of funding. It is read with the cost of funding and the loan-to-deposit ratio. The share says the price of the deposit base; the ratio says what the bank does with it.
In French, they are called dépôts à vue.
2. The measure
The share of demand deposits sets demand deposits against total customer deposits and assets, at the closing date. It is calculated in the same way for every bank.
Example: the bank where demand deposits weigh most is UBCI, in the first half of 2026. It has 2 272.8 million dinars of demand deposits against 4 271.1 million dinars of customer deposits: a share of 53.2%.
3. Why it matters
Demand deposits pay little or nothing. With the cost of other funding unchanged, the higher their share, the lower the bank's cost of funding.
A dinar lent costs the bank less when it is drawn from a non-interest-bearing current account.
4. What it does not say
A high share does not say how stable the deposits are. Current accounts can be withdrawn quickly, which calls for enough liquidity to meet withdrawals.
Nor does it say the quality of the network. It also depends on the bank's customers: companies, individuals, public bodies.
It does not say the cost of the other deposits. Two banks with the same share can pay different rates on their savings and term deposits.
5. Comparative reading of the listed banks
| Rank | Bank | Share of demand deposits | Cost of funding, annualised | Loans / deposits | Margin / net banking income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UBCI | 53.2% | 3.95% | 94.4% | 48.6% |
| 2 | Attijari Bank | 47.5% | 3.56% | 57.5% | 33.4% |
| 3 | BIAT | 46.7% | 3.74% | 57.4% | 32.2% |
| 4 | ATB | 34.6% | 4.52% | 75.2% | 46.8% |
| 5 | UIB | 31.5% | 4.47% | 90.2% | 53.6% |
| 6 | Amen Bank | 31.4% | 5.26% | 81.2% | 18.7% |
| 7 | BNA | 30.8% | 5.85% | 94.5% | 11.6% |
| 8 | BH Bank | 28.6% | 4.90% | 101.4% | 30.7% |
| 9 | BT | 28.0% | 4.75% | 96.8% | 57.1% |
| 10 | STB | 25.6% | 4.77% | 67.2% | 2.9% |
Definitions Cost of funding, net banking income
Relative to customer deposits, demand deposits weigh from 25.6% to 53.2% depending on the bank. Across the 10 banks, they make up 36.3%.
The table places them next to two neighbouring measures, those of the cost and the use of funding. A high share with a low cost points to a cheap deposit base; a high share with a high cost points to dearer funding elsewhere on the balance sheet.
6. What if…?
What if part of demand deposits started to earn interest? Suppose 10% of demand deposits moved into savings accounts. They would then be paid at least the savings rate (TRE) set by the Central Bank of Tunisia, that is 6.00% a year. The cost of funding would then rise by at least 0.12 points to 0.27 points, depending on the bank.
All else being equal, the period's operating profit would drop by at least 4% to 12% where it is thick. The higher the share of demand deposits, the more exposed the bank is: that is the other side of cheap funding. This shift is a strong assumption. Over one year, no bank saw its share of demand deposits fall by more than 3.4%; at one bank, it rose by 15.1%.
Bank
Demand deposits that shift
Amen Bank’s share of demand deposits: 31.4% → 29.8%. Its funding cost would go from 5.26% to at least 5.34%. The 5% level is a strong assumption: it goes beyond the largest move observed over one year.
Rank in the brief’s table: 6th → 7th.
Demand deposits are assumed to bear no interest. Those that shift move into savings accounts, paid at least the rate set by the Central Bank (TRE): the effect shown is a minimum.
7. What the analyst looks at next
- The cost of funding: it says what the deposit base costs, demand deposits included.
- The loan-to-deposit ratio: it says what the bank does with the deposits it gathers.
- The net interest margin: it says what is left once funding has been paid.
8. Where to read it in Tunisian financial statements
On the balance sheet, line PA3, «customer deposits and assets», gives the total. The notes break it down into demand deposits, savings deposits, term deposits and other sums owed to customers.
An accounting point: the total of line PA3 does not hold only deposits in the everyday sense. It can include other amounts owed to customers, such as accrued interest payable (related liabilities), depending on the bank's presentation. The share of demand deposits is therefore read on a wider total than customers' accounts alone.
Tunisian companies’ figures,
as soon as they are published
A note with each release of financial statements, and new guides. A confirmation email follows.
9. Three reading traps
First trap: the breakdown in the notes does not always follow the same nomenclature from one bank to another. To avoid it, reconcile the headings before comparing: current accounts and sight accounts go to demand deposits.
Second trap: a closing balance can be swollen by end-of-period flows. To avoid it, compare several closings.
Third trap: savings deposits can cost as little as demand deposits. To avoid it, read the share of demand deposits with the cost of funding.
10. Ranking of the 10 listed banks by share of demand deposits, first half of 2026
Banks are ranked from the highest value to the lowest, amounts in TND million:
Share of demand deposits
Figures at 30 June 2026, taken from the interim individual financial statements.
| Rank | Bank | Demand deposits (TND m) | Customer deposits (TND m) | Share of demand deposits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UBCI | 2 272.8 | 4 271.1 | 53.2% |
| 2 | Attijari Bank | 5 689.3 | 11 969.6 | 47.5% |
| 3 | BIAT | 10 740.1 | 23 021.6 | 46.7% |
| 4 | ATB | 2 287.5 | 6 607.2 | 34.6% |
| 5 | UIB | 2 260.6 | 7 185.6 | 31.5% |
| 6 | Amen Bank | 2 926.0 | 9 332.1 | 31.4% |
| 7 | BNA | 4 739.6 | 15 393.1 | 30.8% |
| 8 | BH Bank | 2 919.8 | 10 209.7 | 28.6% |
| 9 | BT | 1 909.1 | 6 807.3 | 28.0% |
| 10 | STB | 3 322.4 | 12 973.4 | 25.6% |
Next update: 2026 annual accounts, to be filed by 30 April 2027. Upcoming
Out of scope: BTE (preferred dividend shares) and Wifak International Bank (an Islamic bank).
Relative to customer deposits, demand deposits weigh from 25.6% to 53.2% depending on the bank.
A rank says a deposit structure at a date, not soundness. The bank with the highest share also depends most on deposits customers can withdraw at any time.
11. Working it out yourself
The calculation takes a few minutes, from the financial statements filed with the CMF alone. Demand deposits are read in the note on customer deposits and assets; the total, on the balance sheet, in line PA3, at the closing date of the half-year.
Set demand deposits against total customer deposits and assets.
One example, first half of 2026: UBCI reports 2 272.8 million dinars of demand deposits against 4 271.1 million dinars of customer deposits: a share of 53.2%. The same calculation, run across the 10 banks, produces the ranking column above: the gaps it shows come from published figures, not from any restatement of ours.
The exercise: take a bank's note on deposits, read the line for sight accounts, divide it by the total of line PA3, then compare with the table. You get the figure in the table, rounding aside: both calculations start from the same financial statements. If a gap remains, first check the column of each line.
12. Why two sources give two figures
The same figure, on the same bank and the same period, can differ from one publication to another. It is not that one of them is wrong: the conventions differ, and they are not always published.
The first difference lies in the nomenclature. A publication can count sight savings accounts with demand deposits.
The second lies in the date. A closing balance and a period average do not give the same share.
The third lies in the denominator. Set against all funding, rather than customer deposits alone, demand deposits make up a smaller share.
This series uses demand deposits from the note on deposits, set against customer deposits and assets (PA3), at the closing date. A reader using other conventions will find other figures; ours are written down in the Method.
13. Frequently asked questions
Which bank has the largest share of demand deposits? UBCI: they make up 53.2% of its deposits at 30 June 2026. From one listed bank to another, this share ranges from 25.6% to 53.2%.
What are a bank's demand deposits? They are the sums customers leave in their current accounts and can withdraw at any time.
Why do they cost little? Because the bank pays nothing on them, or very little.
Is a high share always an advantage? It lowers the cost of funding; it also makes the bank more sensitive to customers shifting to interest-bearing placements.
Where are these amounts read? On the balance sheet and in the note on customer deposits and assets, in the financial statements filed with the Conseil du marché financier (CMF).
Key points
- Demand deposits are among a bank's cheapest sources of funding.
- Their share weighs on the cost of funding and the interest margin.
- On its own, it says nothing about how stable deposits are.
Read also: the cost of funding, the net interest margin, the loan-to-deposit ratio, the Readings note, the method of the series.
Sources: interim individual financial statements at 30 June 2026 published with the Conseil du marché financier (CMF), notes included; savings rate set by the Central Bank of Tunisia.
Show the 3 formulas used in this publicationHide the formulas
- Interest margin: Interest margin = interest and similar income − interest expense and similar charges.
- Share of demand deposits: Share of demand deposits = demand deposits ÷ customer deposits × 100.
- Cost of funding: Cost of funding = interest incurred (annualised over a half-year) ÷ average third-party funding (total assets − equity) × 100.
Tunisian companies’ figures,
as soon as they are published
A note with each release of financial statements, and new guides. A confirmation email follows.
How to cite this publication
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