The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) recently embarked on an effort strengthen the microfinance industry in the country. Banks have been given a uniform set of standards to use in evaluating requests for funding by microfinance institutions. Banks also must track retail and microfinance loans separately, as well as monitor the gender of borrowers and the type of economic activity for which each retail loan is intended.
CBE is also running a trial project with banks and “civil associations” to leverage digital financial services. Among the goals is to train field staff in the know-your-customer rules that CBE has established for digital services.
By Sascha Strobl, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Resources:
Daily News Egypt:
https://dailynewsegypt.com/2017/05/28/banks-obliged-separate-microfinance-retail-loans/
Central Bank of Egypt:
http://www.cbe.org.eg/en/
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