CBUAE hikes base rate by 75 bps
The Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) has decided to raise the base rate applicable to the Overnight Deposit Facility (ODF) by 75 basis points on June 16, 2022. This decision was taken following the US Federal Reserve Board’s announcement to increase the Interest on Reserve Balances (IORB) by 75 basis points.
UAE central bank expects GDP growth to reach 4.2% next year
The United Arab Emirates central bank said it expects real GDP growth to reach 4.2 percent next year, up from its earlier forecast of 3.3 percent, the state news agency (WAM) reported. The United Arab Emirates’ central bank said that real gross domestic product (GDP) growth jumped to 3.8 percent in 2021 and was expected to reach 5.4 percent in 2022, while non-oil GDP growth rose to 5.3 percent in 2021.
Abu Dhabi signs deal to boost UAE exports to West Africa
The Abu Dhabi Exports Office (Adex), the export-financing arm of the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, has signed a trade finance agreement with the Ecowas Bank for Investment and Development (EBID) to bolster trade between the UAE and the lender’s member states in West Africa. As part of the agreement, Adex will open a credit line of $20m to increase the volume of trade between the regions.
EDB a ‘key engine of UAE’s industrial transformation agenda’
Emirates Development Bank’s (EDB) objective is “to maximize our impact on the UAE economy”, and aims to do so by raising its contribution to gross domestic product to more than Dh10 billion ($2.7bn) by developing value chains focusing on the industrial sector.
Mashreq talks about gamification, trading crypto, and teenagers
Having just launched a new digital bank account aimed at Generation Z, Mashreq has plenty more such offerings on the way. Sridhar Iyer, Head of Mashreq Neo & Consumer banking said “There are several products and services that are in the pipeline including financial gamification, gifting, budgeting, and new innovations.”
UAE Central Bank highlights plan for banking and insurance sectors
The CBUAE governor’s assistants and senior employees conducted a presentation on the Bank’s strategy for the years 2023-2026, which covers all its sectors. During the meeting, the Board approved the vision, mission & values, strategic objectives & indicators, and the key projects and initiatives. Discussed during the meeting as well as a proposal for conducting a study on a job nationalization program and Emiratisation of leading professions by qualified UAE citizens in the banking and insurance sectors.
UAE, Egypt and Jordan governors discuss economic partnership
Central Bank governors of the UAE, Egypt and Jordan met to discuss opportunities for collaboration and expansion in the financial sector.
This includes the supervision of licensed financial institutions, information and expertise exchange, benefiting from joint experiences in the fintech sector, development of payment systems and technical skills for specialized cadres, and technical assistance in the financial sector.
UAE to issue dollar-benchmarked dual-tranche sovereign bonds
The UAE government is set to issue dual-tranche USD benchmark size bonds with a 10-year tranche and a 30-year Formosa tranche. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Bank of America Securities, Citigroup Global Markets, Emirates NBD Capital, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC Bank, J.P. Morgan Securities, Mashreq Bank and Standard Chartered Bank will be the lead managers and book runners to arrange and market to investors, with Industrial and Commercial Bank of China joining the mandated group as co-manager.
