The Central Bank of Egypt is set to unveil a $50 million to $100 million fintech fund by early 2020. This was revealed by Egypt’s Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Amr Talaat.
According to Daily News Egypt, Talaat revealed that the ministry will contribute the fintech funds upon the CBE’s directive. This initiative falls under the CBE’s initiatives that aim to transform Egypt into a regional centre for digital financial services.
As part of the initiatives, seven technological parks will be launched in different universities at a total cost of $60.8 million this year. He said the parks will be financed via the ministry’s resources at the beginning of a new academic year.
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Talat further stated that Egypt’s ICT sector recorded 16% growth in fiscal year 2018/19 and that the country’s CT exports stood at $2.6bn within a year. He revealed that the sector contributed 3.2% of Egypt’s GDP during the previous fiscal year. They aim to reach 4% this year and also grow it to about 8%.
The Minister also said Egypt will increase investments in its ICT sector, considering that digital infrastructure is the bedrock of Egypt’s digital transformation strategy. The CBE will establish an Innovative Financial Technology Applications Lab and a Financial Technology Unit.
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