UAE gross bank assets, including bankers’ acceptances, rose over 10.8 percent year-on-year to AED4.287 trillion ($1.16 trillion) in May 2024, up from AED3.869 trillion ($1.05 trillion) in May 2023, according to the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE).
Credit growth
Gross credit grew 0.7 percent from AED2.063 trillion in April 2024 to AED2.077 trillion ($565.47 billion) in May 2024, driven by increases in domestic credit (0.7 percent) and foreign credit (0.9 percent). Domestic credit expansion was due to rises in credit to the public sector (0.6 percent) and private sector (1.2 percent).
Deposit growth
Bank deposits settled at AED2.678 trillion in May 2024, with private sector deposits up 1.2 percent and non-banking financial institutions deposits rising 2.7 percent.
Monetary base expansion
The monetary base expanded 1.8 percent to AED727.1 billion, led by growth in currency issued, reserve accounts, and banks’ current accounts and overnight deposits at CBUAE.
Money supply dynamics
M1 money supply stood at AED879.2 billion, while M2 rose 0.5 percent to AED2.160 trillion, mainly due to a AED25 billion increase in Quasi-Monetary Deposits. M3 money supply was AED2.63 trillion in May 2024.
Increase in CBUAE foreign assets
The foreign assets of the CBUAE increased by 2.55 percent during April 2024, reaching AED750.29 billion at the end of the month, compared to AED731.62 billion ($204.27 billion) at the end of March 2024. This indicates that the CBUAE has added more than AED176 billion to its foreign assets within a year, from April 2023 to the end of April 2024.
Bank balances and deposits with banks abroad rose to AED508.78 billion at the end of April 2024, compared to about AED489.31 billion at the end of March 2024. The value of foreign securities at the end of April 2024 amounted to AED183.93 billion. Additionally, the value of other foreign assets increased to AED57.58 billion at the end of April 2024 from their previous level of AED56.48 billion at the end of March 2024.
UAE insurance landscape in 2024
In June 2024, the number of licensed insurance companies in the UAE remained at 60, comprising 23 traditional and 10 takaful national companies, and 27 foreign companies. The number of insurance-related professions increased to 500.
According to the CBUAE, gross paid claims of all types of insurance plans increased by 18.3 percent YoY to AED8.4 billion in Q1 2024. This was mainly driven by the increase in claims paid in property and liability insurance by 47.1 percent YoY, and in insurance of persons and fund accumulation.
The total technical provisions of all types of insurance increased by 6.9 percent YoY to AED78.8 billion in Q1 2024 compared to AED73.7 billion in Q1 2023. The volume of invested assets of the insurance sector amounted to AED72.2 billion (54.8 percent of total assets) in Q1 2024 compared to AED70.5 billion (54.9 percent of total assets) in Q1 2023.
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