The Central Bank of the UAE reported that total banking assets rose by 1.1 per cent in February 2026 to AED5.472 trillion ($1.49 trillion). Total credit increased 1.2 per cent to AED2.63 trillion ($716 billion), including an additional AED20.6 billion in domestic credit. Bank deposits expanded by 1.9 per cent to AED3.4 trillion ($926 billion), with resident deposits climbing 1.7 per cent to AED3.098 trillion ($844 billion).
According to the Central Bank of the UAE, the capital adequacy ratio stood at 17 per cent in early March while the liquidity coverage ratio exceeded 146.6 per cent, both above international standards. Five UAE lenders, including First Abu Dhabi Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Emirates Islamic, Emirates NBD and Commercial Bank of Dubai, featured in Forbes’ 2026 ranking of the world’s best banks. Moody’s maintained the UAE’s Aa2 rating with a stable outlook on 30 March 2026, and S&P Global Ratings affirmed its AA/A-1+ rating with a stable outlook for local and foreign currency obligations.
An S&P Global Ratings assessment found consolidated government net assets at around 184 per cent of GDP and government liquid assets at approximately 210 per cent of GDP in 2026. The UAE signed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements with the Philippines, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Gabon during the first quarter of 2026 as it pursues a target of AED4 trillion ($1.09 trillion) in non-oil trade by 2031. A June 2026 bilateral trade analysis noted that the network of CEPA deals had pushed non-oil foreign trade above $1 trillion in 2025, placing the country ahead of its diversification schedule.
World Trade Organisation figures show the UAE entered the top ten global merchandise exporters for the first time, ranking ninth. Total foreign trade for 2025 reached AED6 trillion ($1.63 trillion), a 15 per cent increase from 2024, while trade in services exceeded AED1.14 trillion ($310 billion) for the first time and non-oil merchandise trade rose 27 per cent to AED3.8 trillion ($1.03 trillion). Mubadala Investment Company reported assets of AED1.4 trillion ($381 billion) with cumulative returns exceeding 10 per cent over both five- and ten-year periods.
Brand valuation data placed ADNOC’s value at $21.13 billion after an 11 per cent increase, securing its position as the UAE’s most valuable brand for the eighth consecutive year and reflecting growth of more than 350 per cent since 2017. Dubai advanced to seventh place in the Global Financial Centres Index, its highest ranking to date, while the total number of registered companies in the UAE surpassed 1.45 million by the end of February 2026. Dubai Chamber of Commerce recorded the addition of 2,709 new companies in March.
Sharjah authorities reported a 1 per cent increase in issued and renewed licences in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier. Ajman issued 1,617 new licences and renewed 8,777 others in the quarter, with renewed licences rising 7 per cent year on year. The Ministry of Finance said the March 2026 auction of dirham-denominated Treasury bonds drew bids of AED4.85 billion against an issuance of AED1.1 billion, achieving an oversubscription rate of 4.4 times for tranches maturing in September 2027 and January 2031.
