Family credit in UAE banking sector hits $115b

Family credit in Arab countries accounted for 38% of total private sector credit at the end of 2023

Issac John

Published: Sun 6 Oct 2024, 7:42 PM

Family credit in the UAE banking sector reached approximately $115 billion last year, according to the latest statistics from the Arab Monetary Fund.

The Fund reported that family credit in the Saudi banking sector stood at around $331.6 billion during the same period. The Algerian banking sector led in terms of growth, with a 12.8 per cent increase in family credit, followed closely by the UAE at 11.3 percent.

Overall, family credit in Arab countries accounted for 38 per cent of total private sector credit at the end of 2023, up from 37.1 per cent in 2022.

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According to the latest statistics of the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), the liquid assets of the UAE's banking sector exceeded Dh800 billion by the end of Q2 2024, The value of liquid assets recorded Dh801.52 billion at the end of Q2 2024, a year-on-year (YoY) increase of 20.2 per cent, or Dh135 billion, compared to Dh666.6 billion at the end of Q2-23, the Central Bank said in its Core Financial Soundness Indicators - Q2 2024 report, issued on Sunday.

Regulatory capital ratios measure the amount of a bank's capital expressed as a percentage of risk-weighted assets. A high capital adequacy ratio provides protection for depositors and promotes the stability and efficiency of the economy's financial system.

According to the Core Financial Soundness Indicators report, the banking sector's Tier 1 Capital Ratio reached 17 per cent at the end of Q2 2024, compared to 16.7 per cent at the end of Q1 2024 and 16.6 per cent at the end of Q4 2023.

The report indicated that the Common Equity Tier 1 capital ratio rose to 15.3 per cent at the end of Q2 2024, compared to 15 per cent at the end of Q1 2024 and 14.9 per cent at the end of Q4 2023.

The AMF noted that banks in the UAE hold the largest share of the Arab banking sector’s assets at 24.3 per cent.

In its recent Financial Stability Report for Arab countries, the Fund said the UAE banking sector’s asset growth reached 11 per cent, driven by a surge in credit and investments, while the Saudi banking sector’s asset growth reached 9.3 per cent on the back of a rise in real estate loans by 11.5 per cent and credit growth in other economic sectors.

At the end of 2023, the total assets of the banking sector in the Arab countries recorded a significant growth, rising to $4.574 trillion, up from $4.355 trillion in 2022, marking a 5.0 per cent growth, said the AMF report.