Banks lend individuals 8 times the funds of small and medium companies

The banks operating in the country provided funds for individuals amounting to 37.2 billion dirhams in six months (the first half of this year 2025), while it was satisfied with financing small and medium -sized companies with a total of 4.4 billion dirhams only, during the same period, at a time when bank investments in stocks, debt bonds and other investments reached 61.9 billion dirhams.

According to data issued by the Central Bank, yesterday, banks have funded individuals with more than eight and a half times, which granted them to small and medium -sized companies, and invested more than 14 times the financing they provided to these companies.

The data showed that the total personnel of individuals from personal loans, cars, cards and private housing amounted to, at the end of last June, 526 billion dirhams, compared to 488.8 billion dirhams at the end of December 2024, an annual increase of 37.2 billion dirhams, equivalent to a growth of 7.6%.

The statistics of the “Central” indicated that the total loans of small and medium -sized companies reached 87.4 billion dirhams, compared to 83 billion dirhams, at the end of December 2024, an increase of 4.4 billion dirhams, equivalent to a growth of 5.3%.

In the same context, the value of the investments in which banks entered the shares and bonds during the first half of this year amounted to 61.9 billion dirhams, bringing the total of these investments by the end of last June to 796.7 billion dirhams compared to 734.8 billion dirhams, at the end of last December, with a growth of 8.4%.

Commenting, the banking expert, Awatif Al -Harmoudi, told «Emirates Today» that “the individuals sector is a high consumption and demand for loans, whether a personal loan, cards or housing, as this corresponds to low risks.

She explained: «On the other hand, from many small companies that do not have sufficient guarantees to take a loan, and do not keep clear records that facilitate banks the issue of evaluation, which means that these loans are not guaranteed, so banks are forced to raise the interest rate, in addition to that between 50 and 70% of financing requests by this type of company, they are rejected by the risk departments of banks, as a result of the lack of documents and guarantees The required. ”

Al -Harmudi indicated that “the nature of the funds themselves for individuals as a high value, and this reflects their increase compared to small and medium companies,” adding: “It is in the interest of the banks to grant funding because this is its basic activity, but it cannot lend to startups that do not have guarantees, but there is good growth in granting financing but it is done in a deliberate way.”

She pointed out that «bank investments in the bonds are also guaranteed, because most of them are government bonds, so their risks are almost non -existent, and this explains the banks’ demand for them.

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11.5 trillion dirhams financial transfers in the banking sector

The total financial transfers in the banking sector, which took place through the central bank system, during the first half of this year, reached about 11.5 trillion dirhams, of which 6,885 trillion dirhams between banks, and 4.585 trillion trillion among customers.

The total number of checks that were rescued using their optical images during the same period amounted to 11.3 million checks, at a value of 711 billion dirhams, while the withdrawals from the central bank amounted to 119.6 billion dirhams, which met with deposits of 104.3 billion dirhams.

• 61.9 billion dirhams bank investments in stocks, debt bonds and other investments during the first half.