Six-month Deposits In UAE Banks Up 10.4% To $49.6bn

Six-month deposits in UAE banks from January through to August totalled AED182.2 billion ($49.6bn), a growth of 10.4 percent from AED165bn ($44.9bn) in December last year.

According to figures released by the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE), the deposits accounted for 19.4 percent of the total deposits value, driven by the interest hike recorded over the past three months.

The six-month interest rates charged by the Emirates Inter-Bank Offered Rate (EIBOR) spiked to 243 basis points during the first 10 days of this month, outshining a rise to 231 points in the one-year term.

Demand has been significantly growing since the beginning of the year for short-term deposits, according to the banking regulator's figures.