UAE Has 'Hardly' Seen Fund Outflows Due To Regional Conflict, Says Al Ghurair

The UAE has“hardly” seen fund outflows due to the regional conflict, said AbdulAziz Abdulla Al Ghurair, chairman of the UAE Banks Federation (UBF).

“Hardly any money has moved out of the UAE. In fact, money is still coming in,” Al Ghurair said during a media briefing on Wednesday.

He pointed out that banks are highly liquid, and therefore the Central Bank did not provide additional funds to local banks.

“The Central Bank did not give banks funds as compared to the Covid-19 period, as the banking sector is in its strongest shape,” he said during the briefing.

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He dismissed concerns about capital outflows and a dollar shortage.

Western media had reported fund outflows after war broke out in the region involving the US, Israel, and Iran.

UAE banks have provided Dh6.2 billion worth of relief to more than 60,000 individuals, as well as small and medium businesses and large corporates, mainly supporting individual customers.

Al Ghurair stressed that the UAE economy and banking sector are performing strongly, outperforming many countries around the world.

“In all previous crises, the UAE always emerged stronger. Despite slower growth globally, the UAE is still growing faster than many other regions and countries. While the world is growing slowly, we are still growing at a much faster pace. Even after adjusting the growth rate, I am optimistic that by the end of the year, we will maintain growth of 5.6 per cent,” Al Ghurair said.

“In the banking sector, the first quarter has seen the best-ever results across all segments, including total assets, liabilities, risk management, and cost efficiency, despite some disruption during one month due to the conflict,” he said, adding that the second quarter is also expected to be positive.

He also ruled out any increase in default rates.

“Banks have learned to deal with the real estate sector, and over time both banks and the property sector have matured. We are in the best shape now,” he said.

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