UAE Central Bank fines total Dh222.92 million in 2026, with one Dh200 million penalty on a foreign bank branch

Abu Dhabi: The total amount of financial penalties imposed by the Central Bank of the UAE on financial institutions and their officials, from the beginning of 2026 until the end of October, reached approximately 222.92 million dirhams, according to a review of press releases issued by the Central Bank during the period. The review showed the imposition of six financial penalties, distributed between three penalties on financial institutions with a total value of Dh221.82 million, and three individual penalties on officials in those institutions with a total value of Dh1.1 million. The financial penalties announced during the period were limited to branches of foreign banks and their officials, while the press releases published since the beginning of the year did not include financial penalties of a specific value for exchange, finance, insurance and brokerage companies. The fine, which the Central Bank announced it had imposed on October 30, accounted for about 90% of the total value of fines announced during the year, after it imposed a financial penalty of Dh200 million on a branch of a foreign bank licensed in the country. The same decision included imposing an individual fine of Dh500,000 on the branch's CEO, and another of Dh300,000 on the head of the compliance department and the money laundering reporting officer, bringing the total value of fines related to the decision to Dh200.8 million. On July 6, 2026, the Central Bank announced a financial penalty of Dh1.82 million on a branch of a foreign bank, while on June 24, it imposed a penalty of Dh20 million on another branch of a foreign bank, in addition to an individual penalty of Dh300,000 on the head of the compliance department and the money laundering reporting officer, bringing the total fines related to the decision to Dh20.3 million. The figures show that fines imposed on financial institutions accounted for about 99.5% of the total value of announced fines, compared to about 0.5% for individual fines, reflecting the focus of the announced measures on holding financial institutions accountable, in addition to holding the relevant officials responsible for violations related to their supervisory and executive duties. The Central Bank affirms that its supervisory and regulatory functions aim to ensure that financial institutions and their employees comply with applicable laws, regulations and approved standards, in order to maintain the transparency and integrity of the financial sector and protect the state’s financial system. On September 23, 2026, the Central Bank of the UAE announced strict enforcement measures against branches of Bank Melli Iran operating in the country, including a ban on conducting any financial transactions to and from Iran, including trade finance transactions and money transfers. The press release did not specify a financial value for these measures, so they were not included in the total fines of Dh222.92 million, and fall under the non-financial administrative and regulatory measures announced during the period.