Central Bank of Egypt and EBRD Launch MasterTalks Series to Drive Banking Sector Innovation for Financial Inclusion

Cairo, 14 December 2025:

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) are launching a series of Masterclasses (MasterTalks) to support inclusive banking best practices as well as advancing knowledge and innovation across the banking sector, in cooperation with the Federation of Egyptian Banks (FEB).

The inaugural event brought together heads of Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs), financial inclusion managers from the banking sector, and key stakeholders from Egypt’s financial ecosystem, including the Credit Guarantee Company (CGC), the Egyptian Credit Bureau (i-Score), and the Egyptian Banking Institute (EBI). International speakers also joined the dialogue to explore the challenges of operationalizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the global use cases tailored to emerging markets.

This event marks the launch of the MasterTalks series, with each session dedicated to a specific theme related to the digital transformation of the banking sector, with the ultimate goal of advancing financial inclusion. Discussions focused on the importance of leveraging digital transformation to modernize the banking industry, showcasing how emerging technologies can be integrated into financial systems. The dialogue also highlighted the role that AI tools can play in enhancing access to both financial and non-financial services for individuals as well as MSMEs, helping address their diverse needs and opening new horizons for financially excluded segments.

This joint initiative reflects the CBE and the EBRD’s focus on supporting innovation, advancing the banking sector’s capacity building, and promoting inclusive, sustainable growth within the country’s financial system.

This also reflects the utmost importance placed by the CBE on promoting financial inclusion, in line with Egypt’s Vision 2030, and as part of its continued efforts to achieve economic empowerment of citizens and expand access to financial and banking services, leveraging on modern technological innovations to accelerate digital transformation across the financial and banking sectors. These efforts have led to a remarkable increase in financial inclusion rates in Egypt over recent years. As of June 2025, the financial inclusion rate reached 76.3%, representing a 214% growth rate since 2016. During the same period, the lending portfolios of banks directed to MSMEs recorded a growth rate of 395%.

Egypt is a founding member of the EBRD. Since the start of the Bank’s operations in the country in 2012, the EBRD has invested over EUR 13.5 billion across 206 projects in the country.

In this context, and on the other hand, there are many sector-related news items that you can follow.

• Central Bank of Egypt Launches the Third Edition of the «FinTech Got Talent 2025» Competition
• Governor of Central Bank of Egypt Attends Graduation Ceremony for Fresh Cohorts of Future Leaders Program at Egyptian Banking Institute