UAE banks have deferred AED13.5 billion in loan repayments for 135,031 customers under the Central Bank of the UAE’s (CBUAE) Financial Institution Resilience Package, according to figures reported via Gulf Today covering the period to 30 June 2026. The total has more than doubled since a AED6.2 billion snapshot of the same package .
What the package actually covers
The CBUAE Board, chaired by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, , describing it as a proactive measure taken in light of “exceptional global and regional circumstances.” The CBUAE’s own announcement does not name a specific triggering event, a notable omission given the package’s scale.
| Pillar | What it does |
|---|---|
| I. Monetary Policy Measures | Enhanced access to reserve balances, up to 30% of the cash reserve requirement, plus term liquidity facilities in AED and USD |
| II. Liquidity and Funding Relief | Temporary relief on liquidity and stable funding ratios |
| III. Capital Buffer Relief | Temporary release of the Countercyclical Capital Buffer and Capital Conservation Buffer |
| IV. Credit Risk Management | Flexibility for banks to postpone the classification of individual and corporate loans affected by the circumstances cited |
| V. Additional Support | A directive that banks continue financing customers and the wider economy |
The loan repayment deferrals being reported now fall under Pillar IV. At the time of approval, the CBUAE cited foreign exchange reserves of more than AED1 trillion, a monetary base cover ratio of 119%, and a UAE banking sector then valued at AED5.4 trillion in assets.
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A package that has grown quickly
The scale of the deferrals has expanded significantly in a short period. In May, the CBUAE reported AED6.2 billion in facilities extended to 65,379 beneficiaries, 60,559 individuals, 4,335 SMEs and 485 corporates, with hospitality, transport and entertainment named as priority sectors, a figure separately . By the end of June, the total had grown to AED13.5 billion across 135,031 beneficiaries, more than double the beneficiary count in under two months.
| Snapshot | Total value | Beneficiaries | Individuals | SMEs | Large corporates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2026 | AED6.2 billion | 65,379 | 60,559 | 4,335 | 485 |
| End of June 2026 | AED13.5 billion | 135,031 | 127,753 | 6,198 | 1,080 |
Who actually benefits
The breakdown by value looks very different from the breakdown by headcount. Individuals make up 127,753 of the 135,031 beneficiaries, roughly 95% of the total by count, but received AED2 billion, about 15% of the value deferred. Large corporates are the opposite: 1,080 beneficiaries, under 1% of the total by count, but AED9.1 billion in deferred repayments, roughly two-thirds of the total value. SMEs sit in between, with 6,198 beneficiaries and AED2.4 billion deferred.
Read one way, the package has near-universal reach: the overwhelming majority of beneficiaries are individual customers. Read the other way, the overwhelming majority of the money deferred is sitting with a small number of large corporate borrowers.
A resilience metric worth reading carefully
The deferral growth has coincided with an improving headline picture for UAE bank asset quality. As of 30 June 2026, the sector’s non-performing loan ratio fell to 2.8%, its lowest recorded level, down from 8.2% in 2020, with the net NPL ratio at 1.3%, against total NPL stock of AED76 billion. Banking assets grew 12.5% year on year, loans grew 18.1%, and deposits grew 14%.
That figure is worth reading alongside Pillar IV specifically. The CBUAE’s own package gives banks flexibility to postpone the classification of loans affected by the cited circumstances, meaning loans currently sitting in deferral are, by design, not being counted as non-performing while deferred.
A falling NPL ratio during a period when deferral volumes are simultaneously more than doubling is not necessarily contradictory. But it is not a fully independent confirmation of underlying credit quality either, since a portion of what would otherwise need classifying is currently parked in the deferral pillar itself.
