Egyptian Banks Launch $63.6m Fund for Fintech Startups

Three of Egypt’s state-owned banks have announced they will partner next month to launch a $63.6m fund to accelerate fintech startups in the country.

The fund will be inaugurated in line with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s orders by the National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr and Banque du Caire.

The fund is open to participation from other financial institutions.

The funding platform is part of a new push to strengthen the local sector and bring more people into the formal economy.

The Egypt fintech fund is specific about startups providing digital financial offerings in the region, and fintech apps that can efficiently increase banking and monetary offerings to all segments of society. Investments from the fund will be made in both local and international emerging fintech companies.

Further, the Egypt fintech fund aims to create an environment that can attract and nurture talent, localizing them in the Egyptian market.

In a statement released by the Egypt fintech fund team, it said: “The participation of banks in this fund stems from their belief in the importance of keeping pace with global developments in the field of financial technology, which is the future of the banking and financial industry in Egypt and the world. The fintech sector plays a role in Egypt’s digital transformation, a focus of Egypt’s Vision 2030”.

The funding will leverage fintech solutions to transform Egypt into a “regional centre for the Arab and African financial technology industry.