Key UAE digital payments statistics for 2026
- UAEFTS customer (retail) transfers were worth AED 9,854,511,550,024 in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
- Aani, the UAE’s national instant payments platform, shows 14.65 million enrolled users. (Al Etihad Payments, Oct 2026)
- The number of transactions processed on Aani rose by around 183% in 2025 compared with 2024. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
- The UAE national card switch (UAESWITCH) processed 663 million ATM and point-of-sale transactions in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026)
- Jaywan, the UAE’s first national card scheme, was officially inaugurated on 20 July 2026, with nationwide card issuance by banks and exchange houses. (Al Etihad Payments, Jul 2026)
- 87% of UAE online shoppers used credit or debit cards in 2025, down from 93% in 2024. (EZDubai and Euromonitor, Sep 2026 (commissioned))
- More than 60 fintech companies were licensed or given in-principle approval by the CBUAE in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026)
- Currency in circulation outside UAE banks was AED 162,584 million in August 2026, up 12.7% year on year (AED 144,252 million in August 2025). (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
- UAE banks cleared 23.78 million cheques worth AED 1.5 trillion in 2025, up 1.42% in number and 8.55% in value. (Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026)
- Salaries paid through the WPS were worth AED 409 billion in 2025, up from AED 341.1 billion in 2024. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
- Dubai’s cashless transactions index reached 90.1%, beating the 90% target set for 2026. (Dubai Finance, Oct 2026)
- Outward remittances through UAE exchange houses rose 27.8% to AED 188.8 billion in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
How to cite this page. Use any figure here, credit the original source shown next to it, and link to this page: "UAE Digital Payments Statistics 2026: Cards, Aani, Wallets, BNPL & Cash, Adjoltz, updated 15 October 2026, https://adjoltz.com/blog/uae-digital-payments-statistics/".
How much money moves through UAE payment systems?
UAE customer transfers through the national transfer system were worth more than AED 9.85 trillion in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Customer transfers were worth AED 3.51 trillion in 2019. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Customer transfers were worth AED 3.40 trillion in 2020. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Customer transfers were worth AED 3.87 trillion in 2021. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Customer transfers were worth AED 4.91 trillion in 2022. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Customer transfers were worth AED 6.14 trillion in 2023. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Customer transfers were worth AED 7.41 trillion in 2024. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| UAE Funds Transfer System (UAEFTS) retail transfers reached 114.9 million transactions in 2025, up 17.76% in volume. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| UAEFTS institutional (bank-to-bank) transfers totalled 865,708 transactions worth AED 14.5 trillion in 2025, up 33.05% in value. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| The UAE Direct Debit System processed 16.3 million transactions worth AED 140.3 billion in 2025, up 22.88% in value. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| The UAE Payment Gateway System processed 1.8 million transactions worth AED 7.84 billion in 2025 (2% fewer transactions, 20% more value). | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
Trillion figures are rounded from the exact values in the Central Bank's data, which the source links give in full.
How many people use Aani, the UAE's instant payments platform?
Aani, the UAE's national instant payments platform, shows 14.65 million enrolled users (October 2026). (Al Etihad Payments, Oct 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Aani shows 875,000 enrolled merchants. | Al Etihad Payments, Oct 2026 |
| Aani is live with 78 licensed financial institutions. | Al Etihad Payments, Oct 2026 |
| Aani passed 12.5 million registered users by April 2026. | Al Etihad Payments, Apr 2026 |
| More than 11.7 million customers had enrolled on Aani by the end of 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Aani transfers grew sixfold year on year, with average monthly growth of 10% through 2025. | Al Etihad Payments, Apr 2026 |
| The number of transactions processed on Aani rose by around 183% in 2025 compared with 2024. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| About 25,000 Aani transfers a day are made using only a mobile number. | Al Etihad Payments, Apr 2026 |
| About 774,000 UAE merchants had adopted Aani as a primary payment solution by April 2026. | Al Etihad Payments, Apr 2026 |
| Aani account-to-account payments settle in an average of no more than three seconds. | Al Etihad Payments, Apr 2026 |
| Aani is integrated with 85% of banks, 10% of exchange houses and 5% of digital wallets and finance companies (Al Etihad Payments’ wording). | Al Etihad Payments, Apr 2026 |
| Aani lets customers send up to AED 50,000 instantly, 24/7. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| The older Immediate Payment Instruction (IPI) rail fell to 33.8 million transactions worth AED 168.8 billion in 2025, from 67.5 million worth AED 225.4 billion in 2024, as activity moved to Aani. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| The CBUAE doubled the IPI per-transaction limit from AED 25,000 to AED 50,000, which it credits for 2024 transaction growth. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2025 |
IPI is an older instant-payment rail, not Aani. Its 2025 fall reflects traffic moving to Aani, not instant payments shrinking.
How do people in the UAE use cards?
The UAE national card switch (UAESWITCH) processed 663 million ATM and point-of-sale transactions in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Point-of-sale transactions on the UAE national card switch totalled 560.7 million in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| Debit cards accounted for 522,617,882 of the switch’s 2025 POS transactions, against 38,117,501 on prepaid cards. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| Debit card POS transactions on the switch rose 4% in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| The national card switch now processes more than 2 million card transactions a day. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| 83% of UAE SMEs surveyed by Mastercard accept card payments. | Mastercard, Aug 2026 (commissioned) |
The national switch covers domestic debit and prepaid card transactions at shops and ATMs, not all card spending.
What is Jaywan, the UAE's national card scheme?
Jaywan, the UAE’s first national card scheme, was officially inaugurated on 20 July 2026, with nationwide card issuance by banks and exchange houses. (Al Etihad Payments, Jul 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Majid Al Futtaim enabled Jaywan acceptance across more than 200 destinations in the UAE. | Majid Al Futtaim, Jul 2026 |
| A UnionPay deal will let Jaywan cards work at more than 100 million points of sale in over 183 countries and regions. | Al Etihad Payments, Aug 2026 |
| Etihad became the first airline to accept Jaywan cards for flight bookings, a month after the scheme launched in July 2026. | Al Etihad Payments, Aug 2026 |
| All Jaywan transactions are in UAE dirhams, which removes foreign exchange fees and conversion spreads. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2025 |
| Network International charges merchants no additional fees on Jaywan transactions through its e-commerce gateway. | Network International, Jul 2026 |
How do UAE online shoppers pay?
87% of UAE online shoppers used credit or debit cards in 2025, down from 93% in 2024. (EZDubai and Euromonitor, Sep 2026 (commissioned))
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Cash use among UAE online shoppers fell from 70% in 2024 to 67% in 2025. | EZDubai and Euromonitor, Sep 2026 (commissioned) |
| Digital wallets accounted for 52% of online payment usage among UAE consumers in 2025. | EZDubai and Euromonitor, Sep 2026 (commissioned) |
| Digital wallet use for online purchases in the UAE rose from 50% in 2023 to 53% in 2024. | EZDubai and Euromonitor, May 2025 (commissioned) |
| In 2020, 41% of UAE online shoppers used a digital wallet. | EZDubai and Euromonitor, May 2025 (commissioned) |
| Bank account transfers were used by 35% of UAE online shoppers in 2025. | EZDubai and Euromonitor, Sep 2026 (commissioned) |
| Bank account transfers were used by 37% of UAE online shoppers in 2024. | EZDubai and Euromonitor, May 2025 (commissioned) |
Shoppers could pick more than one method, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
How fast is fintech growing in the UAE?
More than 60 fintech companies were licensed or given in-principle approval by the CBUAE in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| The number of fully licensed fintech entities doubled to 36 by January 2026, from 18 in 2024. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| 16 stored value facilities (e-wallet issuers) were licensed in the UAE in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| 30 retail payment service providers and card schemes were licensed in the UAE in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| Tabby Cash, Tabby’s UAE spending account, had over 150,000 users before its full UAE rollout. | Tabby, Jul 2026 |
| BNPL provider Tabby received a CBUAE stored value facilities (wallet) licence in April 2026. | Tabby, Apr 2026 |
| The first live UAE government transaction using the Digital Dirham (the central bank digital currency) was executed in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| The UAE’s Open Finance platform, Al Tareq, went live in 2025 with two banks and two third-party providers. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| 72% of UAE SMEs surveyed by Mastercard accept mobile payments. | Mastercard, Aug 2026 (commissioned) |
| 83% of UAE SME decision-makers say digital and online payments help their business grow faster. | Mastercard, Aug 2026 (commissioned) |
| 14% of UAE SMEs accept cryptocurrency as payment, according to Mastercard. | Mastercard, Sep 2026 (commissioned) |
| 10% of UAE SMEs already pay business expenses in stablecoins. | Mastercard, Sep 2026 (commissioned) |
What are the UAE's rules for buy now, pay later?
Under CBUAE rules, interest-free short-term credit (the licence category used for buy now, pay later) is capped at AED 20,000 per borrower, or three months’ verified net income if lower. (Central Bank of the UAE, Sep 2023)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Short-term credit providers may not charge interest, and total fees, including late fees, are capped at 30% of the original amount. | Central Bank of the UAE, Sep 2023 |
| Short-term credit must be repaid within 12 months, including any rescheduling. | Central Bank of the UAE, Sep 2023 |
| Providers must check the borrower’s credit report for short-term credit of AED 5,000 or more. | Central Bank of the UAE, Sep 2023 |
| The CBUAE granted its first restricted (short-term credit) finance licence in 2025, taking active finance companies to 19. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
The Central Bank's rules use the term "short-term credit"; BNPL providers operate under them.
Is cash still used in the UAE?
Currency in circulation outside UAE banks was AED 162,584 million in August 2026, up 12.7% year on year (AED 144,252 million in August 2025). (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Banks withdrew AED 251.7 billion in cash from the Central Bank in 2025, up from AED 209.2 billion in 2024. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| UAE ATMs on the national switch handled 102.9 million transactions worth AED 160.8 billion in 2025, up 9.05% in number. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
How many cheques are written in the UAE?
UAE banks cleared 23.78 million cheques worth AED 1.5 trillion in 2025, up 1.42% in number and 8.55% in value. (Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| In 2024 the UAE cleared 23.45 million cheques worth AED 1.38 trillion. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2025 |
| In 2023, 22.9 million cheques worth AED 1.31 trillion were presented for clearing in the UAE. | Central Bank of the UAE, Jun 2024 |
How are salaries paid in the UAE?
Salaries paid through the WPS were worth AED 409 billion in 2025, up from AED 341.1 billion in 2024. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| 7.26 million employees were registered on the UAE Wages Protection System in 2025, up from 6.06 million in 2024. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
| Salary payments processed through the WPS rose from 67.5 million in 2024 to 79.5 million in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| WPS salaries were worth AED 296 billion in 2023 and AED 246 billion in 2022. | Central Bank of the UAE, Jun 2024 |
| Employers registered on the WPS rose 15% to 368,448 in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Apr 2026 |
How cashless is Dubai?
Dubai’s cashless transactions index reached 90.1%, beating the 90% target set for 2026. (Dubai Finance, Oct 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Cashless payment initiatives contributed more than AED 8 billion to Dubai’s economy. | Dubai Finance, Oct 2026 |
| Dubai government cashless collections reached 99.66% in the first half of 2026. | Dubai Finance, Oct 2026 |
| Merchants accepting digital payments in Dubai rose 10 percentage points, from 81% to 91%. | Dubai Media Office, Oct 2026 |
| Cash use among tourists in Dubai fell from 24% to 22%. | Dubai Media Office, Oct 2026 |
| Cash use among workers in Dubai fell from 44% to 40%. | Dubai Media Office, Oct 2026 |
| Workers’ satisfaction with digital payments in Dubai rose from 75% to 83%; tourists’ from 81% to 86%. | Dubai Media Office, Oct 2026 |
| Dubai Customs took 99.3% of its payments cashless in the first half of 2026 (99.4% in 2025, 99.2% in 2024). | Dubai Customs, Oct 2026 |
These figures cover Dubai only. Dubai Finance has not published how its cashless index is calculated.
How much money is sent through UAE exchange houses?
Outward remittances through UAE exchange houses rose 27.8% to AED 188.8 billion in 2025. (Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026)
| Statistic | Source |
|---|---|
| Personal remittances made up AED 115.7 billion of 2025 outward remittances through exchange houses. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Inward remittances through UAE exchange houses jumped 53.6% to AED 36.0 billion in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| The UAE had 64 licensed and active exchange houses in 2025, down from 73 a year earlier. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
| Remittances generated 51.6% of UAE exchange houses’ core income in 2025. | Central Bank of the UAE, Aug 2026 |
How we built this page
Every figure comes from the organisation that produced it: government bodies and regulators, company filings and official documents, and original research by the organisation that ran it. We opened each source, confirmed the number on the page and kept the exact wording in a verification sheet, checked on 15 October 2026. Payment-system figures come from the Central Bank of the UAE's 2025 annual report, Financial Stability Report and monthly statistics. Aani's user count is shown with the date we read it, because its page is not dated. Research paid for by a company with an interest in the result is labelled "commissioned", and modelled figures are labelled "estimate". We check every source link monthly and refresh the numbers each quarter.
Sources
- Al Etihad Payments (CBUAE subsidiary), Aani Delivers a Transformational Leap in the UAE’s Digital Payments Landscape: 12.5 Million Users and Instant Transfers in 3 Seconds (2026-04-10)
- Al Etihad Payments (CBUAE subsidiary), Al Etihad Payments and UnionPay International Sign MoU to Enable Global Acceptance of Jaywan Mono-Badged Cards (2026-08-11)
- Al Etihad Payments (CBUAE subsidiary), Etihad passengers can now use UAE’s Jaywan card to book flights (2026-08-20)
- Al Etihad Payments (CBUAE subsidiary), About Aani (live figures panel) (2026-10-15)
- Al Etihad Payments / WAM, Mansour bin Zayed inaugurates ‘Jaywan’, UAE’s first national card scheme (2026-07-20)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Finance Companies Regulation (C 3/2023), CBUAE Rulebook (2023-09-29)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Central Bank of the UAE Annual Report 2023 (2024-06-13)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Central Bank of the UAE Annual Report 2024 (2025-04-07)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Financial Stability Report 2024 (2025-08-04)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Central Bank of the UAE Annual Report 2025 (2026-04-09)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Monthly Banking Operations Statistics (2019-2026), August 2026 edition (2026-08)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Statistical Bulletin (Monetary & Financial Statistics), August 2026 (2026-08)
- Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE), Financial Stability Report 2025 (2026-08-17)
- Dubai Customs, via Government of Dubai Media Office, Dubai Customs records 99.3% cashless payment rate in H1 2026 (2026-10-14)
- Dubai Finance (Department of Finance), via Government of Dubai Media Office, Dubai Finance: Dubai Cashless Strategy exceeds its 2026 targets (2026-10-09)
- EZDubai Logistics Hub with Euromonitor International, E-commerce Sector in the MENA Region, 2025 report (Light Version) (2025-05)
- EZDubai Logistics Hub with Euromonitor International, E-commerce in MENASA 2026 (6th edition) (2026-09)
- Government of Dubai Media Office, Dubai Government Leaders: Dubai Cashless Strategy’s achievements reflect the emirate’s leadership in innovation (2026-10-09)
- Majid Al Futtaim (release published by Al Etihad Payments), Majid Al Futtaim Among the First Companies to Enable Jaywan Acceptance (2026-07-15)
- Mastercard, Mastercard SME Confidence Index: 74% of UAE business decision-makers remain confident about the year ahead (2026-08-18)
- Mastercard, Mastercard research: UAE SMEs among global leaders in stablecoin and digital asset payments (Dreamonomics) (2026-09-28)
- Network International (release published by Al Etihad Payments), Network International rolls out UAE’s Jaywan card acceptance for online payments (2026-07-20)
- Tabby, Tabby secures wallet licence in the UAE (2026-04-16)
- Tabby, Tabby launches Tabby Cash, a free spending account with up to 3% cashback and free transfers (2026-07-13)
