Central Bank of UAE Expands Collaboration to Strengthen Financial Ties

• CBUAE and HKMA discussed strengthening collaboration with the three major sectors. 
• UAE will continue to collaborate and look forward to exchanging knowledge.

The United Arab Emirates has set its sights on developing itself as a crypto hub. Recently, the UAE has taken lots of initiatives to establish this goal. Following that, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) has plans to enhance its collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) to strengthen financial ties and boost cooperation in multiple areas. 

On May 29, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority conducted a bilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi. CBUAE and HKMA discussed strengthening collaboration with the three major sectors. 

CBUAE to Enhance Financial Market Connectivity

CBUAE and HKMA plan to collaborate on financial infrastructure, financial market connectivity between these two authorities, and virtual asset regulations and development. Adding to that, the two central banks discussed their combined fintech development initiatives and knowledge-sharing efforts in their respective innovation hubs.

A joint working group will be formed to progress the agreed initiatives with the support of relevant stakeholders from the two banking sectors. Following the meeting, the two senior executives of the central bank conducted a seminar on key opportunities to pursue between CBUAE and HKMA. The seminar has covered topics on possible ways to provide better cross-border trade settlement and several collaborative initiatives.

The banks operating in the UAE participated in the seminar, as did the banks operating in Hong Kong. Moreover, H.E. Khaled Mohamed Balama, Governor of the CBUAE, stated that the UAE is looking forward to a long-lasting engagement with HKMA. UAE will continue to collaborate and look forward to exchanging knowledge on similar areas of interest.