CBE: Bank finance portfolios for MSMEs grew by 362% in 6 years

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced that banks' finance portfolios for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) grew by 362% in six years (December 2015 to December 2023). In a report obtained by MENA on the main indicators of financial inclusion for 2023, the bank stated that micro and small-sized enterprises received funding worth EGP 32.7 billion during this period, noting that nearly 235,000 entrepreneurs benefited from financial education and awareness programs. The bank indicated that the proportion of citizens in the age group of 16 years old and above, who have accounts either at banks or Egypt Post or mobile wallets or pre-paid cards, jumped to around 70.7%, representing a total of 66.4 million persons. Regarding financial inclusion for women, indicators showed that the number of women who own financial accounts reached 20.3 million women in December 2023, with a growth rate of 244% compared to 2016, bringing the financial inclusion rate to 62.7%. The report pointed out that the t otal number of women who have mobile wallets stood at 4.5 million, while the number of women who have pre-paid cards amounted to 6 million and the number of women who own bank and postal accounts hit 20.1 million. Source: State Information Service Egypt