Saudi Arabia toughens rules on bank transfers to UAE: Reuters

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Saudi Arabia toughens rules on bank transfers to UAE: Reuters

August 18, 2026

RIYADH,— Saudi Arabia has quietly tightened the rules on money transfers to the United Arab Emirates, treating the neighboring Gulf state with the same level of scrutiny normally applied to countries seen as high risk for illegal money flows, three people familiar with the matter said, Reuters reported.

The move, which has not been made public, may explain why several companies have reported trouble sending money from Saudi accounts to the UAE in recent months.

Bloomberg and the Financial Times first reported the payment delays in July. The extra oversight steps have not been reported until now.

Six business owners told Reuters that transfers in different currencies from their companies had been delayed or sent back by Saudi banks, with no official reason given.

Saudi Arabia’s central bank requires banks to run added checks on customers or countries seen as higher risk for money laundering, terrorism financing and other crimes.

Earlier this year, the central bank told major Saudi banks to apply these checks to payments involving the UAE, the three sources said. They spoke on condition they not be named.

A fourth source, a Western business executive operating in Saudi Arabia, said their bank gave the same reason when asked about delayed payments.

Asked about the matter, the Saudi central bank said there are no direct restrictions on any specific country.

It said the kingdom has a strong system in place to fight money laundering and terrorism financing that follows standards set by the Financial Action Task Force, a global watchdog based in Paris.

The bank said all lenders in Saudi Arabia apply necessary controls based on their own internal risk reviews, taking into account factors including a country’s risk level.

A UAE official said the country’s economy ministry has not received complaints from private companies about delays or problems moving money between the two nations.

The official said the UAE and Saudi Arabia have close, long-standing economic and trade ties backed by major trade and investment activity, and that the government stays in touch with businesses and would look into any concerns raised through proper channels.

Two of the sources said the added scrutiny puts the UAE, a major center for real estate deals and trade in precious metals and stones, in a group of more than six regional countries that Saudi Arabia treats as high risk for financial crime.

That group includes Lebanon, South Sudan and Iraq, all on the FATF’s so called grey list of countries needing closer monitoring.

The FATF removed the UAE from that list in 2024 after the country made changes to its anti money laundering rules, though some anti corruption groups said the move came too soon.

The United States has placed sanctions on several people and groups based in the UAE accused of raising or moving money for organizations including Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Somalia’s al Shabaab.

One Saudi source described the new oversight as a quiet signal to UAE leaders to keep relations strong after months of rising tension between the two countries.

Four other regional financial sources, who were not told the reasoning behind the measures, agreed with that view.

Officials in both countries did not respond to questions about what triggered the change.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE remain major trade partners, but their interests have pulled apart over time on issues from oil production levels to global influence and competition for foreign workers and investment.

Tensions became public late last year over the two countries backing opposite sides in Yemen’s conflict.

Saudi Arabia accused the UAE of endangering its security by supporting separatist fighters near the Saudi border.

The two also disagreed on how to respond to Iran’s conflict with the United States and Israel, even while trying to show a united stance against Iranian attacks on Gulf states.

Analysts say the two economies are too closely linked through trade, investment and shipping for a complete break to make sense for either side.

Saudi Arabia is the UAE’s top trading partner in the Arab world. In 2024, the UAE was Saudi Arabia’s fifth largest export market and fourth largest source of imports, based on figures from the Observatory of Economic Complexity.

Justin Alexander, director of the consulting firm Khalij Economics, said the war involving Iran has strengthened the case for cooperation on shared priorities such as keeping the Strait of Hormuz open.

Last month, top media figures from both countries posted matching messages on social media stressing their close ties.

Even so, economic rivalry between the two has grown for years as each tries to cut its dependence on oil revenue and build itself into a leading financial hub.

Dubai still leads the region as a business center, but Saudi Arabia has pushed global companies to move their regional offices to Riyadh, at times making that a requirement for winning large government contracts.

Business owners said their payment troubles began shortly after the UAE announced on April 28 that it was leaving OPEC, the oil producing alliance largely led by Saudi Arabia.

The head of a Dubai based consulting firm said Saudi clients had trouble paying his company and suggested he move operations elsewhere.

An investor with stakes in two other UAE companies said clients told them Saudi officials had asked them to avoid doing business with UAE firms.

Those companies waited weeks for payments from Saudi Arabia, in some cases for less than 1 million dirhams, about $272,257, transfers that used to clear within days.

According to Reuters three bankers said transfers to the UAE now go through extra layers of review, with some taking weeks and others failing to go through at all.

Three business owners said their companies have started routing payments through third countries to avoid the problem.

(With files from Reuters)