UBF urges resilience, innovation, governance to Reinforce UAE’s global standing

The UAE Banks Federation (UBF), the sole representative and unified voice of UAE banks, has emphasised the importance of strengthening resilience, responsible innovation, and governance to enhance the stability, growth, and competitiveness of the financial sector, to fulfil its role in socio-economic development and reinforcing the UAE’s position as a leading global financial centre.

During his participation in the UAE Financial Sector Supervisory Roundtable, organised by the Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) in Abu Dhabi, Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair, Chairman of UBF, highlighted that strengthening financial resilience, embedding the principles of responsible innovation, and advancing governance frameworks are fundamental pillars underpinning the UAE’s distinguished position.

The roundtable brought together officials, specialists and experts from the financial and banking sector to discuss rapidly evolving regulatory and supervisory environments, emerging risks and opportunities, and practical approaches to strengthening financial resilience. The agenda covered three main themes: establishing a framework for a resilient and innovative financial sector, enhancing operational and cyber resilience and, and aligning supervisory and industry outcomes.

The UBF Chairman stressed the importance of continued cooperation between regulatory authorities and financial institutions under the direct supervision of the Central Bank of the UAE as this collaboration supports strengthening the resilience of the financial sector, keep pace with rapid technological developments, and uphold the highest standards of integrity, transparency and stability. He also emphasised the importance of reinforcing trust in the UAE’s financial system to sustain growth across sectors. The UAE ranks first globally in the consumer trust in the banking and financial sector, maintaining its leading position for the third consecutive year.

Al Ghurair reaffirmed UBF’s commitment to continuing its cooperation with the Central Bank of the UAE, relevant authorities, and financial institutions to establish clear priorities, assign responsibilities, set defined timelines and develop measurable indicators to assess progress in strengthening the financial sector’s resilience and future readiness.

He outlined key priorities for effective supervision, including anticipating emerging risks; enabling responsible innovation; protecting financial integrity; and strengthening board accountability. He noted that maintaining robust capital and liquidity positions and ensuring sustainable funding sources are essential to enhancing financial institutions’ ability to withstand volatility and continue supporting economic growth under all circumstances.

Al Ghurair said: “We must prepare for the next generation of risks while keeping pace with the next generation of financial services, supporting innovation without compromising stability. Innovation requires trust, interoperability, and clear rules for engagement and cooperation. Regulatory authorities, financial institutions, fintech companies, market infrastructure operators and technology providers must work together to ensure that new forms of finance are integrated safely into the financial system.”

He called for financial integrity to be treated as a strategic asset for the UAE, not simply an obligation to comply with legislative and regulatory frameworks. He underscored the importance of cooperation in combating financial crime amid growing challenges associated with AI-enabled fraud and advanced technologies. He also highlighted the need to strengthen governance across banking and financial institutions, with particular emphasis on the responsibility of boards of directors to ensure the effectiveness of supervisory controls.

Al Ghurair said: “Our ambition should not be limited to our ability to withstand challenges. We must work together to establish the UAE as a financial centre recognised for the highest standards of integrity, innovation, and reliability. Strong supervision is essential to achieving it. Our opportunity is to connect banking, capital markets and financial technology into a coherent national proposition: financing businesses, supporting entrepreneurs, facilitating trade and connecting international capital with productive investment”.

He added: “Rapid advances in financial technologies, including artificial intelligence, digital assets, and blockchain, create significant opportunities to develop financial services and enhance their efficiency. Realising these opportunities requires clear governance frameworks, effective risk-management controls, and continuous coordination among relevant stakeholders to ensure these technologies are used responsibly and securely.”

Al Ghurair also called for financial institutions to strengthen their preparedness for emerging technological risks, develop security solutions capable of addressing future threats, and manage potential systemic risks arising from shared reliance on cloud services, data providers, and technology providers.

He affirmed that interoperability between financial systems, the development of digital infrastructure, and closer alignment between innovation and regulatory frameworks are central to supporting the growth of the financial sector and strengthening its global competitiveness.

The UBF Chairman further stressed the importance of secure and lawful information-sharing among relevant stakeholders, developing supervisory and compliance mechanisms, and reinforcing the accountability of boards of directors and executive management for risk management, while ensuring the independence of risk, compliance and internal audit functions.

The roundtable sessions addressed the development of an innovative and resilient financial sector, the enhancement of operational resilience and cybersecurity, emerging trends in fraud prevention, and the alignment of supervisory priorities with established industry practices. Discussions also examined practical experiences and lessons learned from financial institutions, supporting continued dialogue and cooperation between regulatory authorities and financial institutions.