The UAE has approved a 2025-2031 strategy to strengthen its position as a global hub for Islamic finance and the Halal industry, with the Central Bank of the UAE coordinating implementation across federal and local entities.
Approved by the UAE Cabinet in May 2025, the strategy aims to increase domestic Islamic finance assets to AED 2.56 trillion by 2031, up from AED 1.4 trillion currently. The UAE ranks third globally on the 2025 Islamic Finance Development Indicator and has 43 licensed Islamic financial institutions, according to the announcement.
The plan includes expanding the international reach of Islamic financial institutions, linking Islamic finance more closely with the Halal industry, and supporting growth in sukuk, money markets and Islamic funds.
Its legal framework includes the 2022 Commercial Transactions Law, which the announcement describes as the UAE’s first commercial law to regulate Islamic finance contracts. The Central Bank’s Higher Shari’ah Authority, established in 2018, has issued more than 280 standards and resolutions aimed at standardising practices across the sector.
Source: Gulf Economist
