UAE's financial sector is resilient, c.bank says after Iranian air attacks

DUBAI, March 5 (Reuters): The United Arab Emirates central bank governor sought on Thursday to reassure that the country's financial sector was strong as the US-Iran war plunged the Gulf state into its biggest crisis since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Iranian missile strikes have shattered the Gulf's safe-haven aura, rattling investors and exposing concerns about the outlook for the booming UAE real estate sector.

The UAE's banking and financial sector was resilient, strong, stable, and well-positioned to navigate regional developments, central bank governor Khaled Mohamed Balama said in a statement, six days into the conflict.

The UAE's capital adequacy ratio currently stood at 17 per cent; liquidity coverage ratio exceeded 146.6 per cent, Balama said.

Total assets of the UAE banking and financial sector exceeded 5.42 trillion dirhams ($1.48 trillion).

Banks, financial institutions, and insurance companies across the country were operating normally and without disruption.

They had advanced frameworks in place for identifying and managing risk, and business continuity in line with international standards.

The central bank continued to closely monitor developments to ensure national banking and financial services remained uninterrupted.

UAE stock markets fell in early trade on Thursday after reopening on Wednesday following a two-day suspension triggered by Iranian missile and drone attacks on the UAE.