Banque Misr, Al-Ahly Bank and Banque du Caire announce investment in the “Encloud” fund for “financial technology”
Iman Al-Wasili
Cairo, Egypt – 30 March 2030: A group of Egyptian national banks announced that they are Banque Misr and Al-Ahly Bank Al-Masry, Banque du Caire and “Global Ventures”, one of the leading companies in the Middle East and Africa in the field of venture capital investment, announced the launch of the “Enclose” FinTech Fund, after obtaining the approval of the Central Bank of Egypt.
This unprecedented step comes in implementation of the state’s strategic directions to support young innovators who will be responsible for building the future Egyptian economy, and the “Enclose” fund aims to promote innovation in the field of financial technology and financial inclusion, as Banque Misr, the main investor in the fund, and Al-Ahly Bank contributed Al-Masry and Banque du Caire, the strategic investors, with a total amount equivalent to 2020 one million US dollars in financing The fund, among other investors, is “e-finance group for financial investments” and “Egypt Banks Company.”
The fund is expected to attract additional investments from an investor In addition to investing in emerging companies, the fund will be supported by the global “Chipyard Technology Ventures” company – which offers its capabilities
The Fund directed its first investments to four companies:
- “Lucky”: It is considered one of the leading financial technology applications in Egypt , offering different installment methods, offers, rewards and cashback to more than 8 million users.
- “Mozare3” farmer: is an electronic platform specialized in agricultural financial technology, serving the agricultural and food sector By supporting and cooperating with farm owners
- “Paymob” : It is considered one of the leading means of digital payment services aimed at facilitating the payment
- Khazna: An Egyptian startup that provides financial services through a mobile application for middle and low-income people in Egypt
On this occasion, Mr. Tarek Amer, Governor of the Central Bank of Egypt
said this step comes in light of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s directives to support and nurture innovative youth in the fields of technology The emerging financial and technological sectors that feed them, and in implementation of the Central Bank’s strategy for financial technology and innovation that aims to create a supportive climate for the financial technology industry, and work to enable more innovative financial technology applications capable of providing and delivering banking and financial services to all segments of society more easily and at a lower cost , as an important step on the path to achieving the targeted digital transformation, and transforming Egypt into a regional center for the financial technology industry in the Arab world and Africa. and regulatory catalysts for the technology industry and working to meet the demand side for financial technology services, in addition to the axis of targeting increasing funding for emerging financial technology projects, which is one of the most important of these axes. Banque Misr, saying: 
“Bank Misr’s contribution to this fund reflects our commitment to keeping pace with developments In the field of financial technology, it is the future of banking and financial services in Egypt and the world. This fund will achieve many gains for the Egyptian economy, by supporting young talents in the financial technology sector inside the country, and creating an ideal environment that enables them to develop innovative solutions that contribute to providing banking and financial services to all segments of society, in a more efficient and affordable manner.”
El-Etreby added, “This is an important step to transform Egypt into a regional hub for the financial technology sector in the Arab and African region. The fund will also help raise the rates of financial inclusion and accelerate the pace of digital transformation in Egypt, which is a cornerstone of Egypt’s vision.
For his part, Hisham Okasha, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Bank of Egypt
The Encloud Fund aims to sponsor emerging financial technology companies, especially in their early stages, and promising talents in the field of financial technology, as one of the entities capable of achieving Gains for the Egyptian economy, in addition to creating the appropriate environment to attract and nurture talent and settle them in the Egyptian market to provide innovative applications in this field and support innovation in the digital banking and financial services sector to reach all segments of society more easily and less costly in order to enhance the principle of digital transformation and enhance financial inclusion, which is what comes Within the framework of the leading role played by the Central Bank of Egypt to support innovation in the financial technology sector and the sectors that feed it to achieve the goals of the state and Egypt’s strategy 2022 In line with the National Bank of Egypt’s strategy on digital transformation.
In the same context, Mr.
added
(The Chairman and CEO of Banque du Caire, saying:
“The launch of the fund offers unique and distinct opportunities, as financial institutions partner with investors and entrepreneurs to find new financial technology solutions, pointing out that these solutions are not limited to I must not only improve the quality of current services, but also contribute to the development of new services, by using the latest technologies that work on information technology, to attract people who do not benefit from banking services.”
“The participation of the three banks, As the main investment entities in this fund, it has a strategic and developmental dimension that will benefit the Egyptian economy as a whole, and transform the country into a regional center for innovation in the financial technology sector, in line with the visions and directions of the Central Bank of Egypt.”
Commenting on this partnership, Basil M Fattah, Partner, Global Ventures:
“We would like to thank all the investors in this fund, and thank them for their trust. Over the past few years, we have had the privilege of partnering with many entrepreneurs in the Middle East and Africa, with a particular focus on the Fintech sector and Egypt as a high priority market.”
“Egypt enjoys With a huge young population that does not benefit from banking services, with an economy dominated by cash transactions, which provides great opportunities for local and regional companies operating in the financial technology sector and its feeding sectors, which are witnessing an accelerated growth in the market. In this regard, we look forward to partnering with all parties based in the field of entrepreneurship in order to continue efforts aimed at supporting this growth, and transforming Egypt into a distinguished regional center for innovation in the field of financial technology.”
For his part, Islam Darwish, CEO of Enclose FinTech Fund, said:
“Over the past few years, Egypt has made a quantum leap to become a vibrant home for entrepreneurship, specifically in the field of Fintech, thanks to contemporary laws and government decisions. and growing partnerships with financial institutions. Fintech startups are expected to play a pivotal role in the digital economic transformation and support the plan to expand financial services in Egypt.”
He added, “We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with the largest Egyptian national banks and the most prominent technology companies.” Local financial institutions such as “e-finance” and “Egypt Banks Company”, in addition to international investors, which will provide an opportunity to provide aspiring entrepreneurs with money Watts necessary to achieve success and competition at the local, regional and global levels, and to contribute to the social and economic development of Egypt.”
