The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) has released its 2025 annual report, highlighting key achievements and strategic initiatives that have significantly contributed to the nation’s economic growth.
The report highlights efforts to enhance the resilience of the financial, banking, and insurance sectors, aligning with the UAE’s long-term objectives and future aspirations.
The report underscores the financial system’s high resilience in adapting to global developments through proactive monetary policies, advanced regulatory frameworks, and innovative digital solutions.
These factors have cemented the UAE’s position as a leading global financial hub based on the highest standards of governance and transparency.
His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the Presidential Court, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the CBUAE, stated that, “The UAE is firmly and confidently advancing its comprehensive and sustainable development model, guided by a forward-looking leadership vision that has positioned its economy to be among the most resilient and diversified economies regionally and globally.”
Khaled Mohamed Balama, Governor of the CBUAE, said that in line with the vision of the wise leadership and the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the CBUAE continues to strengthen the pillars of a robust financial system characterised by the highest levels of resilience and efficiency. This is achieved through a proactive regulatory system and prudent reserve management that support sustainable growth.
HE Khaled Mohamed Balama Governor – CBUAE
“The year 2025 represents significant progress to enable the future of the financial sector through advanced prudential tools, dynamic policies highly responsive to changes, and leading innovation and digital transformation for a sustainable financial system. The CBUAE continues to reinforce the UAE’s leadership as a global financial hub, shaping a financial future that reflects international confidence in its innovative economic model.”
CBUAE reports outstanding performance and key financial sector growth
The report highlights an exceptional economic performance, with real GDP growth of 5.6 percent in 2025. This growth was supported by the increasing contribution of non-oil sectors, as well as the success of economic diversification strategies and proactive monetary policies in reducing inflationary pressures to stable levels of 1.3 percent, thereby further enhancing the competitiveness of the national economy.
The report also reflects a sustainable financial outlook, emphasizing the continued growth of real GDP in 2026, which underscores high confidence in the UAE’s financial system.
The banking sector achieved regional leadership with assets valued at $1.4 trillion (AED5.4 trillion), supported by a 17.9 percent growth in the credit portfolio and a 16.2 percent increase in deposits, underscoring the sector’s solvency and its high ability to meet growing credit demand in a stimulating business environment.
The insurance sector also continued its qualitative growth path with a remarkable increase in gross written premiums by 15.5 percent, reaching $20 billion (AED75.2 billion). This reinforces the important role of the sector in the financial stability system and in safeguarding the UAE’s economic gains.
In the field of developing supervisory and regulatory systems, the CBUAE has strengthened the financial system through additional capital buffers and the adoption of a neutral buffer of 0.5 percent to ensure the continuity of credit. Stress test results proved the efficiency of the banking sector to withstand risks, with capital adequacy ratios remaining above regulatory thresholds and a notable improvement in asset quality in accordance with the highest international standards.
Strengthening Regulatory Framework and Enhancing Digital Transformation
The CBUAE further strengthened its regulatory framework by integrating climate risks and IT governance into its supervisory priorities, while intensifying on-site supervision to ensure the highest levels of compliance. These efforts were underpinned by the adoption of ‘Supervisory Technology’ (SupTech) tools and large data analysis, enabling a transition to proactive risk assessment and enhancing the digital readiness and global competitiveness of the financial sector.
