ABU DHABI: Current account balances and deposits of the UAE Central Bank with banks abroad rose 54.7 per cent or Dhs80.8 billion in the first ten months of the year to Dhs228.7 billion from Dhs147.8 billion in the same corresponding period last year, according to figures released by the Central Bank.

The sustained, robust growth of foreign deposits since January 2017 demonstrates the vibrancy of the country’s banking system in general, showed the monitoring mechanism of the foreign holdings.

‘’May 2017 saw the highest rate of growth of 26.6 per cent, or Dhs45.3 billion, in foreign deposits to Dhs215.7 billion as compared to Dhs170.4 billion in April,’’ the Central Bank noted.

The UAE banking system has maintained its coveted position ahead of its GCC peers in terms of asset performance and capital buffers by the end of September.

According to the UAE Central Bank recent statistics, the asset value of 48 banks operating in the country amounted to around Dhs2.3 trillion ($720 billion) by the end of September, a fact which proves that the UAE banking system’s solvency profile is not the best among the GCC States only but also across the entire region, according to estimates by leading international financial organisations.

According to UAE Central Bank recent figures, total assets of Islamic banks operating in the UAE amounted to Dhs535 billion by the end of October, around 6 per cent growth since the beginning of the year, accounting for 20.2 per cent of total banking assets in the country, valued at around Dhs2.639 trillion during the first 10 months of the year .

The noticeable growth in Sharia-compliant financial operations in the country mirror the significant development of this kind of banking products which has been enjoying impressive growth across the region over the past few years.

According to Central Bank figures, the value of credit provided by Islamic Banks since the beginning of the year until October surged to Dhs361 billion,a growth of 7.7 per cent against the end of 2016.

Loans and credit facilities provided by Islamic banks make up 22.8 per cent of total loans provided by the entire banking system.

WAM