Chinese Banks Top Global Peers as Main Lenders to The Gulf

The Gulf is fast emerging as part of China’s next big financial play, with years of diplomatic overtures now translating into hard cash.

Chinese banks’ lending to the region jumped nearly three-fold to a record $15.7 billion in 2025, excluding bilateral loans, with the bulk going into Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. In contrast, banks from the US, UK and eurozone together provided only about $4.6 billion to the Gulf last year, the data showed.