Global Credit Class Classification Agency Capital “CI” raised the basic financial strength classification (CFS) of the United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates from “BB+BB”, in a move that reflects the continuous improvement in the bank’s performance indicators and its operational flexibility, while it has maintained its classification of long -term foreign currencies at “BBB+” and short -term at “A2” with a stable future look.
The agency confirmed in its report issued today, that this evaluation reflects the strength of the bank’s capital base and the quality of its increasing assets, in addition to the improvement of profit rates and the rise in net interest income and fees, and the report also indicated the bank’s success in reducing troubled loans and achieving strong coverage rates exceeding 172%.
According to the agency, the bank has maintained a positive performance despite the structural challenges in the market, such as the concentration of deposits and loans, high dependence on short -term financing, in addition to the surrounding geopolitical risks.
The report indicated that strong growth in loans was driven by the bank’s focus on financing real estate institutions and projects with cash flows, which enhances its position as an institutional bank in the first place. Despite its small size compared to the large players in the market, the bank is counting on supporting its main partner, the Qatar Commercial Bank in enhancing its future growth.
The United Arab Emirates Bank
In terms of the quality of the assets, the year 2024 witnessed a decline in the percentage of troubled loans to low levels, while the improvement continued during the first quarter of 2025, and the bank recorded a good profitability with a growth in net profit by 18% in 2024 and 49% during the first quarter of 2025, which was reflected in the rise of the return on assets to 1.8%.
Regarding liquidity, the bank recorded a strong growth in customer deposits and an improvement in financing rates, although the cost of financing remains higher than its competitors due to the low rate of current and savings accounts (CASA). The report confirmed the bank’s possession of a huge portfolio of incurable securities.
As for the capital, the bank has maintained strong formal rates, supported by the issuance of additional capital instruments in 2023, and it is intended to proceed with the issuance of priority rights of one billion dirhams this year, which may enhance its capital base by about a third and allow it to implement its expansion strategy for the coming years.
