Washington, US--The US Treasury Department pushed back on Friday against claims it had eased sanctions against West Bank settlers after pressure from Israel's finance minister. The US recently sanctioned seven Israeli settlers and two farming outposts in the West Bank in response to a surge in violence, freezing their assets...

Tokyo, Japan -- Japan's largest trade union said Friday it had secured the highest wage hikes since 1991 in preliminary data that stokes speculation the central bank will finally shift away from its outlier ultra-loose monetary policy. The Rengo union said that in spring wage talks so far, its members had...

Doha, Qatar - Doha Bank has successfully issued $500 million in international bonds, garnering a total order book of $2 billion, marking an oversubscription of 4 times. The investor base includes prominent asset managers, banks, private banks, and insurance companies from the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East....

The law issued by Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum exempts the foreign banks licensed to operate in the Dubai International Financial Centre. Besides all foreign banks operating in Dubai, the law applies to special development zones and free zones.

ABU DHABI, UAE- The aggregate capital and reserves of banks operating in the UAE increased 13.3 percent, reaching US$131 billion (AED481.5 billion) by the end of November 2023 compared to US$114.6 (AED424.9 billion) at the end of the same period of 2022, according to the Central Bank of the UAE's...

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- The UAE's real GDP will grow 5.3 percent in 2024, compared to 3.4 percent in 2023, according to S&P Global Ratings, the world's leading credit rating agency. The credit rating agency in a new report said that UAE banks reported exceptional profits for the full year 2023...

Abu Dhabi, UAE--In a significant move that underscores the interconnectedness of global monetary policies, central banks across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have announced decisions to hold their interest rates steady, mirroring the recent actions of the US Federal Reserve. This collective stance reflects a cautious approach to navigating the...

MUSCAT, OMAN - Omani banks listed on the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) recorded net profits of US$1.17 billion (RO453.5 million) in 2023, up 18.6 percent from US$992 million (RO382.3 million) in 2022. According to the Oman News Agency, the banking sector benefited from several local economic indicators in 2023, including...

DUBAI, UAE - The Citizens Debts Settlement Fund announced the exemption of 1,244 citizens from their debts with a total value of US$107 million (AED394,586,000), in cooperation with 18 banks and financial institutions in the country. The initiative follows the directives of President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and...

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA - Saudi Arabia raised a syndicated loan of US$11 billion (SAR 41.25 billion) to fund a budget deficit, media reported. The 10-year loan was funded by a group of banks including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Citigroup Inc, First Abu Dhabi (FAB), and HSBC Holdings Plc, according...

ShareAction said banks amplify "green credentials to their customers and shareholders" but there is a "structural" lack of transparency on what their green finance activities achieve. It examined the green finance commitments and activities of Europe's top 20 banks. Banks are widely criticised for slow progress on the transition to...

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- UAE banks' investments surpassed AED 580 billion, hitting a record high in August 2023, according to the Central Bank of the UAE. The investment grew by 19.5 percent year-over-year to reach AED 585.4 billion ($159 billion) by the end of August 2023, up AED 95.6 billion...

Baghdad, Iraq - Saudi banks have offered to fund Iraq's largest housing project, which was previously stalled by South Korea's Hanwha Company due to a financial dispute with the Iraqi government, the official Iraqi daily Alsabah reported on Thursday.  The Bismaya project had already seen the construction of approximately 30,000...

Days after thousands of people took to the streets in the Kurdistan region over unpaid civil service salaries which they blamed on Baghdad, the federal government said it would disburse annually to Iraqi Kurdistan two trillion and one hundred billion dinars to be paid in three equal installments of more...

Major banks in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, including the Commercial Bank of Dubai and First Abu Dhabi Bank, reported record profits in the first half of 2023, says a report.

TEHRAN, IRAN  – The foreign minister of Qatar said the procedures for the transfer of Iran’s unfrozen foreign assets to Qatari banks will be finalized within the next week. Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman al-Thani made the comments in a telephonic conversation with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian...

According to the credit rating agency, a combination of higher interest rates and production cuts by the OPEC is expected to restrain near-term growth prospects for major GCC economies. However, non-oil growth is anticipated to bolster the region's economies, particularly in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- Investments of banks operating in the UAE reached AED 580 billion ($157.90 billion) at the end of July 2023, the highest level in history, according to the latest statistics of the UAE Central Bank. The data showed that investments of banks operating in the country increased...

Abu Dhabi, UAE -- Standard & Poor's Global Ratings expects that the banks of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will achieve strong performance in 2023. In a recent report, the credit rating agency said that UAE banks will benefit from strong non-oil GDP growth, which will mitigate the impact of...

According to a report by asset management firm Janus Henderson, payouts to shareholders are expected to grow further in spite of economic uncertainty. During the second quarter payments by the 1,200 biggest public companies rose more than expected, increasing by 4.9 percent compared to the same April-to-June period last year.

Manama, Bahrain--Bahrain has indicated its keenness to encourage investments in the kingdom's oil and environmental projects through partnerships with the private sector, especially banks, to achieve sustainable development goals. Dr. Mohammed bin Mubarak bin Daina, Oil and Environment Minister, Special Envoy for Climate Affairs, has affirmed the government’s keenness to...

Abu Dhabi, UAE--The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) has revealed that its total foreign assets increased to $161.22 billion at the end of June, from $160.70 billion in May. The UAE's current account balances and deposits with banks abroad amounted to $99 billion by the end of...

Abu Dhabi, UAE-- The banks in the UAE increased their credit facilities for the business and industrial sectors by around $7.73 billion in the first five months of this year. According to the latest statistics from the Central Bank of the UAE, the two sectors witnessed a 4 percent rise...

The dollar remained steady with talk of yet another US interest rate hike, while oil prices retreated following disappointing Chinese trade data. Analysts warned that while the US economy remained in rude health after more than a year of rate hikes, fears of recession remained.

Results of large US banks released underscored the boon from higher interest rates, as executives described the world's biggest economy as "resilient" but facing risks. JPMorgan Chase, Citi and Wells Fargo all enjoyed the benefits of being able to charge higher rates on loans, while not suffering much from elevated...

Doha, Qatar--The increasing availability of government sukuk and Islamic liquidity management tools by the Qatar Central Bank supports liquidity management and investment options for Islamic banks, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. In a report issued today, it indicated that its review of its future expectations for three Qatari...

ABU DHABI, UAE - Aggregate capital and reserves of banks operating in the UAE rose by 10 percent year-on-year (YoY) to US$118.5 billion (AED435.3 billion) at the end of April 2023 from US$107 billion (AED395.9 billion) at the end of April 2022, according to the Central Bank of the UAE’s...

GCC banks see continued growth on the back of innovation, tech focus and sustained government support. TRENDS Special Report analyzes factors that shape the sector.

Both countries attract a high level of foreign investment, which provides capital for their banking sectors. The UAE is the second-largest FDI recipient in the Middle East, and Saudi Arabia is the largest one in the region.

In its UAE Monetary, Banking, and Financial Markets Developments Report for Q1, which provides insights into the monetary and banking activities, the Central Bank of UAE said its foreign assets increased by 8.8 percent to reach $146.3 billion.

Despite improvement in cost-to-income ratio, net profit sees only a marginal rise of 2.7% QoQ to $4.61bn due to slower growth in operating income and high impairment charges.

Abu Dhabi, UAE--Emirates Development Bank (EDB) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development’s Industrial Development Bureau (IDB) to continue its support of the Financial Ecosystem Programme. The MoU signing took place on the first day of the at Make It in the...

Abu Dhabi, UAE--Gross banks’ assets, including bankers’ acceptances, rose by 2.2 percent, from $999 billion at the end of January 2023 to $1,020.55 billion at the end of February 2023, according to the Central Bank of the UAE's Monetary & Banking Developments for February 2023. Gross credit increased by 1.2...

ABU DHABI, UAE -  The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) imposed administrative sanctions on eight banks operating in the UAE. The administrative sanctions take into account the banks' failures to comply with the CBUAE's instructions not to grant any loans or credit facilities to the beneficiaries of loans granted...

FRANKFURT, GERMANY -  Eurozone banks tightened lending criteria in the first quarter at their fastest pace since the 2011 sovereign debt crisis, while demand for loans fell heavily, according to a European Central Bank survey released Tuesday. The results highlight the impact of aggressive monetary tightening combined with recent banking sector...

Stock markets traded mixed as last week's optimism gave way to worries that central banks may wait longer than expected to end their policy of raising interest rates. After the Paris CAC 40 reached a fresh record-high at 7,552 points, profit-taking set in and the French index was flat in...

Still predicting "moderate GDP growth, US treasury secretary has affirmed that the country's banks may be more cautious in granting loans after recent turmoil in the sector, she said In an interview to be aired on Sunday. The dramatic collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank shook the financial...

Abu Dhabi, UAE--Credit facilities provided by national banks to the business and industrial sector rose 5.2 percent on a YoY basis to $9.61 billion by the end of last January, according to figures revealed by the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE). The apex bank's figures showed that...

JPMorgan Chase reported a rise in first-quarter profits alongside banking giants Citigroup and Wells Fargo. The first look at the sector - since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and two other banks - showed the industry is benefiting from the Federal Reserve's shift towards higher interest rates and from...

Geneva, Switzerland--Swiss federal prosecutors said Sunday that they had opened an inquiry into the UBS takeover of its embattled banking rival Credit Suisse, following pressure from federal authorities and media leaks. In an email to AFP, prosecutors said they issued orders to investigate after "taking stock of the situation with all...

The emergence of interoperable central bank digital currencies may lower costs and reduce settlement risks, but may hit bank revenues from cross-border transactions, warns Moody's.

Several factors contributed to the fall in UAE markets, including a decline in oil prices, worries about multinational banks' health.

PARIS, FRANCE  -  COP28 President-Designate Dr. Sultan Al Jaber met French President Emmanuel Macron and outlined his vision on the need to reform multilateral financial institutions to unlock capital for clean technologies and adaptation efforts. During his meeting with Macron, Dr. Al Jaber emphasized the need for ambitious reforms across...

Abu Dhabi, UAE – The UAE banks provided AED 83.3 billion ($23 billion)  in financial facilities to small and medium-sized enterprises in 2022, according to the latest data released by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE). Loans to SMEs accounted for 10.4 percent of the total accumulated balance of...

There is chaos in the crypto market and the dust rises with an episode of failure, but failures must not be generalized, says Don Tapscott of Blockchain Research Institute.

Abu Dhabi, UAE--UAE Banks Federation (UBF) organised a virtual workshop on combating trade-and-credit-documents-based money laundering on Wednesday. The workshop comes as part of UBF's ongoing efforts to improve frameworks and procedures necessary to develop and maintain the highest levels of compliance and risk management at member banks. The workshop was...

Lebanese central bank chief Riad Salameh is accused of embezzling millions of dollars. He faces faces investigations related to suspicions of money laundering and illicit enrichment in Lebanon and abroad after he amassed a fortune in the country mired in financial crisis.

Taking retaliatory action for imposition of sanctions against the Islamic Republic, Iran has slapped 36 individuals and entities from the European Union and Britain with sanctions. According to the Iranian foreign ministry, Tehran has placed the names on its "sanctions list for supporting terrorism and terrorist groups" as well as...

LONDON, UK - The London stock market jumped to a record peak Tuesday in a positive open across Europe, after hefty gains on Wall Street with all eyes on US inflation. The British capital's benchmark FTSE 100 index of top companies reached as high as 7,986.20 points. "The tailwinds from another...

Lebanese Banks Association is demanding a capital control law that would enshrine informal restrictions on withdrawals in hard currency and Lebanese pounds.