Convert an Emirates NBD Statement to Excel

Emirates NBD statement conversion: bilingual layouts, AED formatting, and verifying the output against the printed closing balance.

Emirates NBD statements bring one complication that most European and Indian statements don't: they are frequently bilingual, with Arabic and English text sharing the page.

Mixed-direction text

Arabic is written right-to-left; English and the numbers are left-to-right. When both appear in one PDF, text extraction can return fragments in an order that doesn't match what you see on the page.

The practical consequence is that descriptions can come back scrambled if fragments are joined in raw extraction order. Ordering fragments by their actual position on the page rather than by extraction order fixes this.

Number formatting

AED amounts use commas as thousands separators and a period as the decimal point, which is straightforward. The thing to watch is that some Emirates NBD layouts print the currency code inside the amount cell — `AED 1,250.00` rather than `1,250.00` — and a parser that doesn't strip the code will reject the value entirely.

Converting the statement

  1. Download the PDF from Emirates NBD online banking The e-statement carries a text layer. A photograph of a branch printout does not, and will need OCR.
  2. Supply the password if the file is locked Emirates NBD e-statements are often protected, and the covering email states the rule used.
  3. Upload and convert Bilingual pages are handled by ordering text fragments by their position on the page rather than by extraction order.
  4. Check the closing balance Confirm the converted closing balance matches the printed one before using the data.

What you get back

In the fileWhat you get
Emirates NBD's own columnsEvery heading as printed, in the same order, value date included where the statement prints one
DatesExactly as printed, with nothing reformatted
DescriptionsArabic and English text as it appears, with wrapped lines joined into one cell
AmountsAs printed. A cell that reads AED 1,250.00 holds exactly that; the balance check reads the figure past the code
A Completeness sheetEvery row checked against the running balance printed beside it, and the statement's own totals where it prints them

Verifying the result

Emirates NBD prints an opening and closing balance along with period totals, which is enough for a complete check. Apply every extracted debit and credit to the opening balance in order and confirm you land on the printed closing figure, then confirm your debit and credit sums match the printed totals.

Both checks matter. The balance chain proves the amounts were read correctly; the totals comparison proves no rows are missing. There is more on why in balance-chain reconciliation.

Frequently asked questions

Are other UAE banks supported?

The reader works from the table on the page rather than a list of banks, so a statement from any UAE bank is read the same way. The Completeness sheet tells you whether yours came out right.

Does the currency code cause problems?

No. The cell keeps 'AED 1,250.00' exactly as printed, and the balance check reads the figure past the code rather than rejecting the row.

Can I convert a statement covering several currencies?

Yes, but no currency column is added: each section comes through as printed. Split the rows where each currency's section starts before totalling, so balances in different currencies are never summed together.

Will Arabic descriptions be preserved?

Yes, Arabic text is preserved as-is in the description column.

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