Fintech & payments regulation in Egypt (2026)
Fintech and digital payments in Egypt: licensing regime.
Egypt operates a clear, in-force licensing regime for digital payments and fintech split across two regulators. The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) licenses payment system operators (PSOs), payment service providers (PSPs) and e-money/mobile-wallet issuers under Banking Law No. 194 of 2020, with comprehensive licensing rules issued in June 2025, while the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) licenses non-banking fintech including consumer-finance/BNPL platforms under Law No. 5 of 2022. National instant-payment rails (the IPN, accessed via InstaPay) and the domestic Meeza card scheme are live and CBE-operated.
Legal framework
Central Bank & Banking System Law No. 194 of 2020 (CBE) for payments/e-money, with detailed PSO/PSP licensing rules issued June 2025; plus Non-Banking Financial Technology Law No. 5 of 2022 (Financial Regulatory Authority) for consumer-finance/BNPL fintech.
Key points: digital payments & fintech in Egypt
Primary payments law & regulator
The Central Bank of Egypt is the payments regulator under the Central Bank & Banking System Law No. 194 of 2020, which for the first time addressed cashless payments, payment service providers, payment system operators, digital banks and e-money. It entered into force on 16 September 2020.
PSO/PSP licensing rules (June 2025)
In June 2025 the CBE issued official rules for licensing and registration of payment system operators and payment service providers, covering cash deposit/withdrawal, fund transfers, issuance of payment instruments, EGP remittances, plus payment-initiation and account-information services. A 12-month transition period (ending June 2026) lets existing operators regularize.
Capital & governance requirements
A payment institution must be an Egyptian joint-stock company dedicated to payment services, with minimum capital of EGP 30m (category A), EGP 10m (category B) or EGP 20m for AIS/PIS providers, plus a bank guarantee equal to 2% of paid-up capital. In September 2025 the CBE added governance, internal-control and fit-and-proper criteria for key officials.
Instant-payment rails (IPN / InstaPay) & Meeza
The CBE launched the national Instant Payment Network (IPN) in March 2022; the InstaPay app was the first mobile access point. The IPN connects all participating banks and e-money issuers via the domestic Meeza card scheme, processing over EGP 2.9 trillion across 1.5 billion transactions by end-2024.
Non-banking fintech & BNPL/consumer finance (FRA)
The Financial Regulatory Authority regulates non-banking fintech under Law No. 5 of 2022 (in force 9 February 2022), licensing digital consumer-finance platforms (covering BNPL-type lending). Contracts must disclose finance amount, term, installments and interest; FRA decrees in 2023 set licensing/regulatory detail and a temporary startup-license track.
Two-regulator architecture
Licensing is split by activity: the CBE supervises bank-side payments, e-money and payment institutions, while the FRA supervises non-banking financial technology (consumer finance, BNPL, insurtech). Firms must identify which regulator's regime their activity falls under.
Timeline of decisions
- Guidance · officialCBE issues licensing & registration rules for PSPs and PSOs
Five years after Banking Law 194/2020, the Central Bank of Egypt published the detailed framework licensing Payment Service Providers and Payment System Operators, setting capital tiers (EGP 10-30m), mandatory bank guarantees, and a 12-month transition window (to June 2026); crypto/e-money issuance remains prohibited without specific board approval.
Central Bank of Egypt
- Guidance · officialCBE issues Payment Systems and Services Oversight Policy
The CBE published its overarching oversight policy for payment systems and services, establishing the supervisory framework within which subsequent PSP/PSO licensing rules would be implemented.
Central Bank of Egypt
- Guidance · officialCBE Issues New Decrees Advancing Digital Transformation Strategy
The Central Bank of Egypt issued a further set of regulatory decrees expanding the licensed digital-payments ecosystem — broadening infrastructure for payment service providers while the statutory ban on unlicensed crypto under Law 194/2020 remained fully in force.
Central Bank of Egypt
- Guidance · officialCBE issues digital bank licensing regulations
The CBE released rules to license and supervise fully digital banks, requiring paid-up capital of at least EGP 2bn (EGP 4bn to finance large corporates) and applying the same AML/CFT and prudential rules as traditional banks, opening Egypt's first dedicated digital-banking regime.
Central Bank of Egypt
- DecisionFRA Issues Decrees 139–141 Implementing the Non-Banking Fintech Law
Egypt's Financial Regulatory Authority issued three implementing decrees for Law No. 5/2022, setting mandatory IT-security infrastructure standards, digital identity and e-contract rules, and outsourcing requirements for licensed fintech firms — completing the operational framework for non-banking fintech while leaving crypto outside its scope.
Clyde & Co
- Decision · officialInstant Payment Network (IPN) and InstaPay launched
The CBE launched the national Instant Payment Network linking all Egyptian banks for real-time account-to-account transfers via the InstaPay app, becoming the backbone of Egypt's interoperable digital-payments infrastructure.
Central Bank of Egypt
- DecisionCBE Launches Instant Payment Network (IPN) as Regulated Digital-Payments Alternative
The Central Bank of Egypt launched the national Instant Payment Network enabling real-time interbank transfers across all licensed banks and e-wallets. The IPN forms the cornerstone of Egypt's strategy to satisfy demand for fast digital payments through regulated infrastructure rather than crypto.
African Enda / SIIPS 2025 Case Study
- LawLaw No. 5/2022 — Fintech in Non-Banking Financial Activities — Enters Into Force
Egypt enacted a dedicated fintech law giving the Financial Regulatory Authority licensing authority over fintech startups operating in insurance, nano-finance, consumer finance, and financial advisory sectors, including a regulatory sandbox. Cryptocurrency and DeFi were explicitly excluded from its scope.
Ibrachy & Partners (summary of Law No. 5/2022)
- LawFintech Law No. 5 of 2022 for non-banking financial activities
This law made the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) the licensor for fintech used in non-banking financial services (insurance, leasing, microfinance, capital markets), introducing startup temporary licenses and a regulatory sandbox, complementing the CBE's authority over payments and banking.
Global Compliance News (Baker McKenzie)
- LawCentral Bank and Banking System Law No. 194 of 2020
Egypt's landmark banking law gave the CBE explicit jurisdiction over payment service providers, payment system operators, digital banks, e-money and crypto, requiring CBE board licensing for payment services and empowering it to exempt fintech/regtech startups during testing (Art. 201).
Matouk Bassiouny
- Guidance · officialCBE launches its first fintech regulatory sandbox
The CBE published its regulatory sandbox framework and ran a first cohort focused on e-KYC and remote mobile-wallet onboarding, alongside an EGP 1bn fintech fund, letting startups test new models under controlled supervision before full licensing.
Central Bank of Egypt
- Law · officialLaw No. 18 of 2019 on non-cash payments
Signed and published in April 2019, the cashless-payments law obliged government bodies, state firms and private enterprises to pay salaries, taxes, dividends and social insurance through digital channels, a major demand-side driver for the payments ecosystem.
Central Bank of Egypt
- GuidanceCBE issues mobile payment services regulations
The CBE board approved revised rules governing mobile-phone payment orders, mandating interoperability between bank- and telco-led wallet schemes, an early foundational step that built Egypt's mobile-money market ahead of the 2020 banking law.
Central Bank of Egypt (via DFS Observatory)
Sources
- cbe.org.eg/en/laws-regulations/regulations/overview
- cbe.org.eg/en/news-publications/news/2025/06/19/08/20/psos-and-psps-licensing-ru
- cbe.org.eg/-/media/project/cbe/page-content/rich-text/payment-system/payment-sys
- cbe.org.eg/en/news-publications/news/2025/09/01/13/10/payment-system-operators-a
- cbe.org.eg/en/payment-systems-and-services/instant-payment-network
- africanenda.org/uploads/files/siips2025/siips_2025_IPN-Egypt_CaseStudy_en.pdf
- matoukbassiouny.com/new-law-alert-new-egyptian-banking-law-no-194-of-2020/
- shehatalaw.com/law-update/new-fintech-law-in-egypt/
- clydeco.com/en/insights/2023/07/egypt-financial-regulatory-authority
- iclg.com/practice-areas/fintech-laws-and-regulations/egypt
- riad-riad.com/new-fintech-law-in-non-banking-financial-activities-in-egypt/
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Next topicOrientation, not legal advice: verify against the primary sources linked above. Last verified 25 May 2026. Methodology & how to cite · State of Technology Regulation 2026