Personal loans lift Oman bank lending to $90bn

Outstanding bank loans in Oman rose 8 percent year on year to $90 billion in the first nine months of 2025, thanks to a surge in personal lending.

Figures released by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) showed personal loans took the biggest share of credit, rising 36 percent year on year to $32.2 billion from January to September.

Deposits at Omani banks reached $88 billion in the nine months to September, an increase of 8 percent.

The private sector topped the deposits ranking, making 52 percent of the total, followed by corporates at 33 percent and small businesses with 15 percent, according to the CBO. 

The CBO also said Islamic banks and windows – a division or unit within a conventional bank that offers products and services compliant with sharia law – provided financing amounting to $19 billion from January to September, up 11 percent compared with the same period in 2024.

Deposits held with Islamic banks and windows rose 11 percent to $19 billion in the first nine months of 2025 versus the year-earlier period. 

• Oman’s law protecting bank savers comes into force
• Oman’s Islamic banks outpace conventional competitors
• Local investors show strong interest in Oman bond issue

The International Monetary Fund praised Oman’s economic and fiscal management following IMF staff’s just-concluded visit to the country.

Oman’s “economic outlook remains favourable” said Abdullah AlHassan, the IMF mission chief for Oman.

“Growth is projected to strengthen over 2025-26 as oil production cuts unwind and non-hydrocarbon activity continues to expand,” he said.