UAE Bank Credit Grows 72.4 Billion Dirhams in August, Lending to Individuals Up 5.6 Percent
Gross bank credit in the UAE rose by 72.4 billion dirhams, or 2.6 percent, in August to 2,871.4 billion dirhams, the Central Bank of the UAE said in its monthly summary of monetary and banking developments. Domestic credit grew 2.8 percent to 2,268.8 billion dirhams, led by lending to individuals, which rose 5.6 percent, or 34.4 billion dirhams.
Private sector lending carries the month
Credit to individuals contributed 1.6 percentage points of domestic credit growth and credit to corporates, up 2.4 percent or 22.8 billion dirhams, contributed 1.0 point. Lending to the government rose 2.8 percent, or 7.2 billion dirhams. On our calculation, the 72.4 billion dirham gross increase less about 9.5 billion dirhams of foreign credit growth puts the rise in domestic credit at about 63 billion dirhams, an estimate sensitive to rounding because component growth rates are published to 1 decimal place. Individuals and corporates together supplied about 91 percent of that increase, individuals alone about 55 percent. Foreign credit rose 1.6 percent to 602.6 billion dirhams.
UAE money and banking, end of August 2026
| Measure | AED billion | Monthly change |
|---|---|---|
| Gross credit | 2,871.4 | +2.6% |
| Domestic credit | 2,268.8 | +2.8% |
| Foreign credit | 602.6 | +1.6% |
| Bank deposits | 3,534.8 | +0.7% |
| Gross bank assets | 5,741.3 | +1.3% |
| Monetary base | 825.9 | +4.2% |
Changes are against the end of July 2026.
Deposits and money supply
Bank deposits rose 0.7 percent to 3,534.8 billion dirhams from 3,509.8 billion dirhams at the end of July. Resident deposits grew 1.0 percent to 3,229.3 billion dirhams, with private sector deposits up 0.7 percent to 2,361.5 billion dirhams and government sector deposits up 3.5 percent to 461.1 billion dirhams. Broad money M2 rose 0.7 percent to 2,919.9 billion dirhams, driven by a 1.4 percent rise in corporate deposits, and M3 also rose 0.7 percent to 3,465.6 billion dirhams. M1 stood at 1,038.9 billion dirhams, with currency in circulation outside banks up 2.1 percent to 162.6 billion dirhams, about 15.7 percent of M1 on our calculation.
On our calculation, credit grew by 72.4 billion dirhams against a 25.0 billion dirham increase in deposits, almost 3 times as much, which lifted the ratio of gross credit to deposits to about 81.2 percent from about 79.7 percent at the end of July. Gross bank assets rose by about 73.7 billion dirhams on our calculation, in line with the growth in credit.
Liquidity and the monetary base
The monetary base rose 4.2 percent to 825.9 billion dirhams. Banks’ and other financial corporations’ current accounts and overnight deposits at the central bank jumped 66.9 percent to 156.1 billion dirhams, and currency issued rose 1.1 percent to 184.0 billion dirhams. On our calculation, current accounts and overnight deposits rose by about 62.6 billion dirhams, more than the monetary base’s overall increase of about 33.3 billion dirhams, and after allowing for the rise of about 2.0 billion dirhams in currency issued, the base’s remaining components fell by about 31 billion dirhams combined.
Why it matters: UAE credit expanded faster than deposits in August, led by households and companies rather than the government, and banks lifted their current account and overnight balances at the same time. With credit at about 81 percent of deposits, the deposit base remains about 663 billion dirhams larger than gross credit, on our calculation.
Outlook: The September report is the next read on whether lending to individuals keeps its pace. On our reading, the 5.6 percent monthly rise in credit to individuals is the line to watch, alongside the ratio of credit to deposits.
Sources: Central Bank of the UAE, The Edge.
