CBD Islamic Banking Review (2026): CBD Al Islami, Formerly Attijari

CBD Al Islami is the Islamic window of Commercial Bank of Dubai, a bank founded in 1969, and it still carries traces of its earlier Attijari Al Islami brand on its own pages. It is a mid-market window with one habit worth copying: its personal finance Key Facts Statement prints both the floor and the ceiling of the Murabaha rate, 5.50% to a maximum of 20% reducing a year. Accounts carry an AED 5,000 average balance rule, waived with a salary transfer or a finance, and the window names its three Shariah scholars. This review of CBD Al Islami covers every published figure and ends with advice for the existing CBD customer.

From Attijari Al Islami to CBD Al Islami

Commercial Bank of Dubai describes itself on the finance pages as one of the first banks in the UAE, established in 1969 as a joint venture between Commerzbank, Chase Manhattan and Commercial Bank of Kuwait before becoming a public shareholding company in 1982 with a 20% Government of Dubai stake. Its Islamic window was marketed for years as Attijari Al Islami, and the name has not fully gone: the Bonus Booster deposit page still offers instant opening through Attijari Al Islami Online Banking. The current brand is CBD Al Islami, housed under the islami section of cbd.ae and served through the ordinary CBD app and branches.

Structurally it is the same arrangement as every other UAE window: Shariah-compliant contracts, segregated pools, and an Internal Shari'ah Supervision Committee answering to the Central Bank's Higher Shari'ah Authority. The bank accounts hub sets CBD Al Islami beside the full Islamic banks and the other windows, and our ranking of the best Islamic windows in the UAE weighs its governance against its pricing.

Accounts: the AED 5,000 rule and what each account pays

The Al Islami Current Account runs on Qard Hassan, a benevolent loan from you to the bank, which is why it pays nothing. The Al Islami Savings Account runs on Mudaraba, with profit earned on the average balance and distributed quarterly. Both pages carry the same affordability note: to avoid a monthly service fee, keep a minimum monthly average balance of AED 5,000, waived if you transfer your salary to CBD (a minimum salary transfer of AED 5,000 or more applies from 1 August 2024) or hold a loan or finance with the bank. The fee schedule lists the breach of minimum balance charge at AED 26.25 a month, not applicable to the savings account in one of its tables, and states that CBD Elite and CBD Private customers have no minimum balance.

The GreenGrowth Account, previously called the E-saver, is the better savings product for most people. It has no minimum balance and no maintenance fee, allows up to three transactions a month without affecting profit, and pays a tiered expected rate of 0.50%, 0.75%, 1.00% or 1.25% a year depending on the monthly average balance, calculated by splitting the balance across tiers. Keep an average of AED 25,000 for more than three months and CBD plants a mangrove on your behalf. The minimum salary to open it is AED 5,000 for salaried customers. At 1.25% it sits in the middle of the published UAE savings range, above the big three's declared rates and below the promotional ceilings at ADCB Islamic and Emirates Islamic.

Mudaraba profit rates: the quarterly table CBD actually publishes

CBD publishes its Mudaraba rate table by quarter going back to 2023, which is more history than most windows offer. For the first quarter of 2026, dirham deposits under AED 1 million earned 0.54% on savings, 0.67% on call, 1.08% for one month, 1.35% for three months, 1.75% for six months and 2.42% for twelve months. The AED 1 million to AED 10 million band paid 0.56% on savings and 2.53% for twelve months, with a 2.25% nine-month rate; AED 10 million to AED 100 million paid 2.58% for twelve months. The fourth quarter of 2025 paid 0.30% on savings and 2.55% for twelve months under AED 1 million, so the short end rose and the long end eased into 2026.

The Mudaraba Investment Deposit starts at AED 10,000 or the dollar equivalent, with terms of one, three, six, nine or twelve months. These are declared rates on a Mudaraba pool, so they are what the pool paid rather than a promise, and the next quarter's table can move in either direction.

Personal finance: the KFS that prints a floor and a ceiling

This is the product where CBD Al Islami disclosure leads. The personal finance Key Facts Statement states that Murabaha profit rates start from 5.50% and run to a maximum of 20% reducing per annum, and it then shows the arithmetic: at 5.50% with due diligence and documentation fees of 0.53%, the annual percentage rate works out to 6.45%. Most UAE banks print a from rate and nothing else, which tells you nothing about what a mid-risk borrower pays. CBD's range tells you the worst case. For deposit-backed finance, the KFS prices at the deposit rate plus 0.5% for tenors up to two years and plus 1% beyond, with a 12-month EIBOR floor.

Eligibility and limits are specific. The minimum total monthly income is AED 8,000 for most applicants and AED 10,000 for one category, with six months' service at a CBD-approved employer. Maximum amounts are AED 2.5 million for UAE nationals, AED 1.5 million for Armed Forces, AED 1 million for pensioners, AED 750,000 for expatriate residents, and AED 150,000 for non-salary-transfer Quick or Digi Finance, capped at 15 times monthly salary for Armed Forces and expatriates. The debt burden ratio is capped at 50%, or 30% for pensioners. The product page advertises savings of up to AED 20,000 on finance up to AED 2.5 million and a free current account with no minimum balance for finance customers.

• Processing fee for salary transfer finance is 1% of the amount, minimum AED 525 and maximum AED 2,625; a 0.5% tier with a AED 787.50 cap applies to the other variant on the KFS.
• Early settlement costs 1% of the remaining balance or AED 10,500, whichever is lower, plus VAT.
• Takaful cover ranges from 0.82% to 2.0% of the total, stated on the KFS as a range rather than a single figure.
• A postponement study fee of AED 105 applies to each deferral request, and a finance cancellation fee of AED 105.
• The late payment charity commitment is capped at AED 200 and goes to charity, not to the bank.
• A security cheque of no more than 120% of the finance amount is taken.

Set against the market, 5.50% is a competitive floor; the personal financing hub and our eight-bank table of the best Islamic personal finance rates in the UAE put it in context, and the 20% ceiling is the number to quote back to a relationship manager who offers you something in the teens.

Auto and home finance: one quote-only, one with real terms

CBD Al Islami Vehicle Finance is a Murabaha with tenors up to 60 months, financing up to 80% of the vehicle, and the possibility of payment deferral. The page prints no profit rate, flat or reducing, so treat it as quote-only and ask for both the flat and the reducing figure in writing before signing, because a flat rate understates the true cost by roughly half. Several competitors publish a rate for every segment.

Home finance is structured as Ready Ijara, with finance up to AED 20 million and tenors to 25 years. The page states a minimum monthly income of AED 12,000 for salaried applicants with six months' service and AED 30,000 for the self-employed with three years in business, ages 21 to 65 or 70 at maturity depending on category. Two terms are genuinely good: 0% processing fee on buyouts, and the right to repay up to 15% of the outstanding balance once a year without charge. The general fee schedule prices new-to-bank processing at 1% with a minimum of AED 3,150, and early settlement at 1% of the outstanding or AED 10,500, whichever is less. No rate is printed, and the page notes that salary transfer customers get a better rate than those without.

The Super Saver covered card

The CBD Al Islami Super Saver is a Visa Signature covered card built around what CBD calls B.E.S.T categories: bills, education (school, college and university fees in the UAE and abroad), supermarkets and transport including fuel. Cashback is earned only on qualifying transactions in those categories, based on posting date, and refunds offset the month's spend. The primary card is free for the first year with the annual fee applying from the second year; the amount is in the card fee table rather than on the product page, so confirm it. Supplementary cards are free for life for family members over 15. The product page also reminds cardholders that paying the full statement balance by the due date is the way to avoid any Murabaha profit charge.

Shariah governance: three named scholars, compared with Mashreq and FAB

CBD names its Internal Shari'ah Supervision Committee. Sheikh Dr Mohammad Abdul Rahim Sultan Al Olama chairs it; he is a member of the Grand Islamic Scholars Body in Dubai, heads the Fatwa Committee of the Zakat Fund, and holds a PhD in comparative Islamic law from Umm Al Qura University. Dr Abdulrahman Alsaadi also sits on the committees of NBF and Sharjah Islamic Bank in the UAE and Muzn Islamic Bank in Oman. Sheikh Dr Moosa Tariq Khoory serves on several UAE committees and holds a master's in jurisprudence from the University of Sharjah. The page also names the management team of the window and a Shari'ah audit function, and a separate fatwas page exists.

That is adequate rather than exceptional. Mashreq Al Islami publishes the most complete Shariah paperwork of any UAE institution we have surveyed, and FAB Islamic goes beyond Central Bank minimums with named scholars and governance documents. CBD gives you names and biographies but not the annual Shariah report on the product pages.

Verdict: stay at CBD, or move?

For the existing CBD customer, the answer is to keep the salary at CBD and use the window for three things: a GreenGrowth account for cash you do not need daily, a personal finance if you borrow, because the printed 5.50% to 20% range gives you a bargaining position, and the Mudaraba deposit at 2.42% for twelve months if you hold more than AED 10,000 you will not touch. Do not keep a plain Al Islami Savings Account at 0.54% when the GreenGrowth pays up to 1.25% with no minimum.

For a shopper comparing windows, CBD loses on savings to the windows that print higher ceilings and on car finance to anyone who prints a rate. It wins on finance disclosure. If you want a Dubai bank that shows every number, Emirates Islamic publishes flat and reducing rates for personal and auto finance and quarterly declared savings rates side by side, and a full Islamic licence with it. The providers directory lets you compare the two profiles directly. Facts checked against cbd.ae on 29 September 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Is CBD Al Islami the same as Attijari Al Islami?

Yes. Attijari Al Islami was the earlier brand of Commercial Bank of Dubai's Islamic window, and the name still appears on some CBD pages, including the Bonus Booster deposit, which can be opened through Attijari Al Islami Online Banking. The current brand is CBD Al Islami, served through the standard CBD app and branches.

What is the minimum balance for a CBD Al Islami account?

CBD asks for a minimum monthly average balance of AED 5,000 on current and savings accounts to avoid a monthly service fee, with the breach charge listed at AED 26.25. The requirement is waived if you transfer a salary of AED 5,000 or more or hold a finance with the bank, and the GreenGrowth account has no minimum at all.

What profit rate does CBD Islamic personal finance charge?

The Key Facts Statement states a Murabaha profit rate starting from 5.50% and a maximum of 20% reducing per annum, with a worked APR of 6.45% at the floor once a 0.53% documentation fee is included. The processing fee is 1% with a minimum of AED 525 and maximum of AED 2,625, and the minimum income is AED 8,000.

Does CBD Al Islami publish its Mudaraba profit rates?

Yes, by quarter going back to 2023. For the first quarter of 2026, deposits under AED 1 million earned 0.54% on savings, 1.08% for one month, 1.75% for six months and 2.42% for twelve months. Larger bands earned slightly more. These are declared pool rates, not guarantees.

Who sits on the CBD Al Islami Shariah committee?

CBD names three scholars: Sheikh Dr Mohammad Abdul Rahim Sultan Al Olama as chairman, Dr Abdulrahman Alsaadi, and Sheikh Dr Moosa Tariq Khoory. The chairman also heads the Fatwa Committee of the UAE Zakat Fund. CBD publishes their biographies and a fatwas page, though not an annual Shariah report on the product pages.

What are the CBD Al Islami home finance terms?

Home finance is a Ready Ijara up to AED 20 million over up to 25 years, with a minimum income of AED 12,000 for salaried applicants and AED 30,000 for the self-employed. Buyouts carry no processing fee, you can prepay 15% of the balance each year free, and early settlement costs 1% of the outstanding or AED 10,500, whichever is less. No rate is published.