UAE records 216% rise in use of digital signatures

The UAE is developing projects that lay the foundations of a pioneering digital economy by combining national skills and technological solutions. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 19 February 2024
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UAE records 216% rise in use of digital signatures

  • Blockchain technology also gaining popularity in financial sector

RIYADH: The UAE government’s adoption of a proactive approach has resulted in a 216 percent increase in the use of digital signatures in 2023, the state-run news agency reported on Monday.

Giving a picture of the fast-growing digital economy of the Gulf Cooperation Council country, the report said blockchain use is also gain ground with nine banks, six exchange houses and three insurance companies adopting the technology during the same period.

Omar bin Sultan Al-Olama, UAE minister of state for artificial intelligence, digital economy, and remote work applications, affirmed that the government is developing and implementing initiatives and projects that lay the foundations of a pioneering digital economy. This economy combines national skills and technological solutions, forming an advanced model that contributes to achieving the targets of the national strategy for the digital economy, by multiplying the contribution of the digital economy to non-oil gross domestic product over the next decade.

He stated that the UAE government is intensifying efforts to accelerate the adoption of digital solutions, aiming through its initiatives and projects to envision and shape the digital future, enhancing the UAE’s leadership and global competitiveness in various fields. 

The UAE government is intensifying efforts to accelerate the adoption of digital solutions.

Omar bin Sultan Al-Olama, UAE minister of state

He was chairing a meeting of the UAE Council for Digital Economy held at the Securities and Commodities Authority in Dubai.

The council reviewed the updates regarding several strategic initiatives aimed at supporting and accelerating the implementation of the UAE’s strategic objectives for the digital economy, in areas such as infrastructure, digital transactions, e-commerce, financial technologies, stimulating investment in digital sectors, attracting and developing digital skills, supporting small and medium enterprises and the latest developments in digital economy statistics gathering and the annual report on measuring the digital economy. It reviewed the development of digital infrastructure and the level of adoption of technological solutions, which have significantly increased in recent months. 

The council further reviewed digital services in the federal network, which were launched to include voice-to-text and text-to-voice conversion, translation, analysis of different emotions, extraction of key phrases, language analysis, and services suitable for accessing high-performance computing resources for machine learning, deep learning, and other applications.

The council discussed topics such as the government service level policy, data center distribution and cloud computing deployment in Gulf countries.


Oman’s Islamic banking assets rise to $24bn on credit growth 

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Oman’s Islamic banking assets rise to $24bn on credit growth 

JEDDAH: Oman’s Islamic banking assets climbed to about 9.2 billion Omani rials ($23.9 billion) by the end of October, underscoring steady expansion in the sultanate’s financial sector as credit growth remains robust. 

Assets held by Islamic banks and Islamic windows accounted for 19.5 percent of Oman’s total banking system, up 10.8 percent from a year earlier, the Oman News Agency reported. 

Oman’s banking sector performance reflects steady progress toward Vision 2040, which prioritizes economic diversification, private sector growth, and financial resilience. 

“As for the total financing provided by institutions engaged in this activity, it also rose by 10.4 percent, reaching around 7.4 billion Omani rials,” the ONA reported, adding that deposits with Islamic banks and Islamic windows grew 11.9 percent to roughly 7.3 billion rials by the end of October. 

Rising credit flows, particularly to non-financial corporates and households, are fueling the development of small and medium-sized enterprises and domestic investment in Oman, supporting efforts to reduce reliance on hydrocarbons and build a more diversified economy. 

“Total deposits held with ODCs registered a Y-o-Y significant growth of 7 percent to reach 33.3 billion rials at the end of August 2025. Total private sector deposits increased by 7.5 percent to OMR 22.4 billion,” the Central Bank of Oman said in a statement issued in October. 

The broader banking sector also saw solid credit growth in 2025. By the end of August, total credit across commercial banks increased by 8.6 percent year on year to 34.1 billion rials, driven mainly by lending to non-financial corporates and households, which accounted for 46.7 percent and 44.7 percent of total credit, respectively. 

Private sector lending alone rose by 6.5 percent, supporting SME activity and domestic investment. 

Meanwhile, aggregate deposits at conventional banks climbed 5.5 percent to 26.1 billion rials at the end of August, with private sector deposits accounting for 67 percent, or 17.5 billion rials, of the total. 

Islamic banking entities mirrored this momentum, with total financing reaching 7.3 billion rials and deposits standing at 7.2 billion rials by the end of August, underscoring steady expansion throughout 2025. 

Islamic banking in Oman was introduced after the Central Bank of Oman issued preliminary licensing guidelines in May 2011, allowing full-fledged Islamic banks and Islamic windows to operate alongside conventional institutions. 

The framework was formalized in December 2012 through a Royal Decree amending the Banking Law, mandating Shariah supervisory boards and authorizing the central bank to establish a High Shariah Supervisory Authority.