The ruler of Abu Dhabi raised by two-thirds the amount that United Arab Emirates nationals in the emirate can borrow free of interest to finance buying or building their homes, to 2 million dirhams ($544,700).

Nationals of the world's fifth-largest oil producer had been allowed to borrow as much as 1.2 million dirhams from the emirate's Private Loans Authority for as much as 30 years, state-owned Emirates News Agency (WAM) said, citing a decree from Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahayan.

Sheikh Khalifa is also the president of the UAE, which has been reaping record oil revenue from soaring prices.

Once the house is built, borrowers can also benefit from a repayment waiver of as much as 25 percent of the loan, WAM said. - Reuters