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Regulator

Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE)

The Central Bank is the federal licensing authority for banks, insurers, finance companies, payment service providers and other financial institutions operating onshore in the UAE.

JurisdictionFederal. Financial institutions operating onshore in the UAE. The two financial free zones have their own regulators for financial services conducted within them.
Established byFederal Decree-Law No. (6) of 2025 regarding the Central Bank and the organisation of financial institutions and activities, which lists the financial activities that require a Central Bank licence.
Licensed activitiesThe decree-law's list includes taking deposits, providing credit, currency exchange and money transfer, and insurance business, among others. Licensed financial institutions fall into three main groups: banks, insurance and reinsurance companies, and other financial institutions.
PaymentsRetail payment services are licensed under the Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes Regulation (Circular 15/2021), which sets out categories of digital payment service and the licence categories that cover them.
Check a firmThe CBUAE publishes the list of all licensed financial institutions in its rulebook.

A finance company that intends to provide retail payment services needs a prior licence from the Central Bank for them, with the exception the regulation sets out for issuing credit cards. Rule CBUAE Rulebook, Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes Regulation

The Central Bank also licenses insurers and reinsurers, including branches of foreign insurers, under its insurance regulations, and finance companies under the finance-companies regulation. The licensing section of centralbank.ae sets out the application route for each type of institution.

Lyx places onshore banking, lending, payments and insurance activities under the Central Bank, and says where an activity may instead, or also, fall under the Capital Market Authority.