(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) The assets of banks and financial institutions operating in the UAE were worth Dh2.38 trillion at the end of March 2015.
Khalifa Mohammed Al Kindi and Shaikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum discussing UAE Central Bank plans. Supplied photo
Dubai: Banks and financial institutions operating in the UAE will continue to perform well in 2015. Their assets have increased by nine per cent in the first quarter of 2015 lending is up 8.2 per cent and customer deposits have gone up by 8.8 per cent in the same period.
These figures were revealed at a meeting between Shaikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance and Khalifa Mohammed Al Kindi chairman of the board of directors of the UAE Central Bank at Zabeel Palace on Sunday.
The meeting was attended by Khalid Juma Al Majid vice chairman of the board of directors; Mubarak Rashed Khamis Al Mansoori governor of the UAE Central Bank and board of directors; and board members Younis Haji Al Khoori Khalid Mohammed Salem Belama Khalid Ahmed Al Tayer and Hamad Mubarak Buamim.
Shaikh Hamdan and Al Kindi reviewed the UAE Central Bank’s latest plans to develop systems to support the growth of the banking sector as per UAE Vision 2021.
Shaikh Hamdan stressed the importance of the UAE’s transition to open data concepts and foundations. These concepts along with the fact that the UAE banking sector is the strongest at a regional level strengthen the country’s global competitiveness. They also allow the country to increase data availability and enhance transparency.
The Smart Government initiative launched by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai was discussed during the meeting. Shaikh Hamdan emphasised the importance of continuing to implement smart services.
He also stressed the need for the Central Bank to coordinate with financial institutions operating in the UAE to continually promote and develop services in both individual and corporate sectors.
Al Kindi cited the actions taken by the Central Bank to raise the capital adequacy of financial institutions. It has also helped in attracting customer deposits and re-deploying them in various sectors of the national economy.
The assets of banks and financial institutions operating in the UAE were worth Dh2.38 trillion at the end of March 2015.
With a high level of deposits and capital adequacy banks are able to continue their lending activities which increased by 8.2 per cent during the first quarter of 2015 reaching Dh1.44 trillion. Customers deposits from residents and non-residents increased by 8.8 per cent during the first quarter of 2015 amounting to Dh1.45 trillion.
Al Kindi said the UAE banking sector possesses cash reserves worth Dh311.1 billion. He reiterated that UAE banks and financial institutions have positive credit ratings with positive outlooks.
Abiding by the UAE Central Bank’s recommendations banks have strengthened their capital adequacy ratio maintaining it at the same level as that of the first quarter of 2015 to exceed 12 per cent with an eight per cent increase in tier 1 capital.
The Central Bank’s total volume of assets in foreign currency increased by 1.3 per cent from Dh296.9 billion at the end of Q1 2014 to Dh306.1 billion at the end of Q1 2015. This is due to an increase of Dh7.52 billion in foreign bonds held to maturity.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.