UAE banking assets rise 4% to AED5.815 trillion in Q3

ABU DHABI/WAM

Gross assets of banks operating in the UAE rose 4 percent quarter-on-quarter during the third quarter of 2026 to more than AED5.815 trillion, representing annual growth of 11.8 percent, according to the Central Bank of the UAE’s quarterly report on monetary, banking and financial market developments issued today.

Total bank deposits increased 2.7 percent quarter-on-quarter to AED3.568 trillion, up 12 percent year-on-year.

Resident deposits rose 2.2 percent to around AED3.25 trillion, while non-resident deposits increased 9.1 percent to AED317.9 billion.

Government-related entities’ deposits contributed around 1.4 percentage points to the quarterly growth in resident deposits, followed by private-sector deposits with a contribution of 0.6 percentage points.

Gross credit rose 5.5 percent quarter-on-quarter to AED2.908 trillion and increased 17.3 percent year-on-year.

In monetary developments during September, money supply aggregate M1 stood at AED1.022 trillion, including AED161.6 billion in currency in circulation outside banks and AED860.7 billion in monetary deposits.

Money supply aggregate M2 increased 0.6 percent month-on-month to more than AED2.938 trillion.

M3 rose 1.2 percent during September to AED3.508 trillion, supported by government-sector deposits, which increased 4.5 percent during the month to AED570.1 billion.

The monetary base stood at AED801.9 billion, while banks’ reserve balances with the CBUAE increased 31.3 percent to AED304.7 billion.

The CBUAE’s foreign assets reached AED956.2 billion at the end of September.

In September’s banking indicators, gross banks’ assets rose 1.3 percent month-on-month to AED5.815 trillion.

Gross credit increased by AED36.7 billion, or 1.3 percent, to AED2.908 trillion, driven by a 1.6 percent rise in domestic credit to around AED2.305 trillion.

Bank deposits increased 0.9 percent from around AED3.535 trillion at the end of August to approximately AED3.568 trillion at the end of September.

Resident deposits rose 0.6 percent to AED3.25 trillion, while non-resident deposits increased 4.1 percent to AED317.9 billion.

Deposits of government-related entities rose 9.6 percent to AED378.2 billion, contributing around one percentage point to the monthly growth in resident deposits.

Deposits of other financial corporations also increased 7.2 percent to AED66.2 billion.

Private-sector deposits remained stable at AED2.345 trillion, while government-sector deposits stood unchanged at AED460.4 billion.

Banking operations data for the first nine months of 2026 showed that the value of bank transfers reached around AED21.734 trillion, including AED13.351 trillion in transfers carried out by banks and around AED8.383 trillion in transfers made by customers.

More than 16.241 million cheques were cleared during the period, with a total value exceeding AED990.5 billion.