Gross assets of banks operating in the UAE rose 4 percent quarter-on-quarter in the third quarter of 2026 to more than AED 5.815 trillion, an annual increase of 11.8 percent, according to the Central Bank of the UAE’s quarterly report on monetary, banking and financial market developments.
Total bank deposits grew 2.7 percent over the quarter to AED 3.568 trillion, up 12 percent year-on-year. Resident deposits increased 2.2 percent to around AED 3.25 trillion, while non-resident deposits rose 9.1 percent to AED 317.9 billion. Government-related entities contributed about 1.4 percentage points to the quarterly growth in resident deposits, followed by the private sector at 0.6 percentage points.
Gross credit expanded 5.5 percent quarter-on-quarter to AED 2.908 trillion, a 17.3 percent rise on the previous year.
September figures showed continued momentum. Gross credit increased by AED 36.7 billion, or 1.3 percent, driven by a 1.6 percent rise in domestic credit to around AED 2.305 trillion. Bank deposits edged up 0.9 percent from AED 3.535 trillion at the end of August.
On the monetary side, M1 stood at AED 1.022 trillion, M2 rose 0.6 percent month-on-month to more than AED 2.938 trillion, and M3 climbed 1.2 percent to AED 3.508 trillion, supported by a 4.5 percent rise in government-sector deposits to AED 570.1 billion. Banks’ reserve balances with the Central Bank rose 31.3 percent to AED 304.7 billion, and its foreign assets reached AED 956.2 billion.
Over the first nine months of 2026, bank transfers totalled around AED 21.734 trillion, while more than 16.241 million cheques worth over AED 990.5 billion were cleared.
News Source: WAM
