Ahli United Bank aims to launch ‘Mobile Banking’ Service in 2015

Egypt’s Ahli United Bank is planning to launch the Mobile Banking service within next year.

Ahli United Bank would then join a group of banks in Egypt that have already started offering customers this service, notably the National Bank of Egypt (NBE), Emirates NBD, and Housing & Development Bank (HDB).

Furthermore, Ashraf Shabib, Head of the Retail Banking division at Ahli United Bank, revealed to Amwal Al Ghad that the bank’s 2014 strategy focuses on inaugurating five new branches. In this respect, the bank has so far opened up two branches, one in Alexandria and another in Rehab City. The third branch in Ahli United Bank’s strategy is due to be launched within the current month in CityStars Mall. The two remaining branches will be inaugurated later by the second half of 2014, he added.

Meanwhile, Shabib referred that Ahli United Bank has recently signed an agreement with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the US tax authority, to adopt the FATCA law (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act).

Hence the bank signed a contract with Ernst & Young LLP, so that the latter would provide technical and financial consulting needed to meet with FATCA’s terms and conditions, he elaborated.

The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) was signed into law on 18 March 2010. Its purpose is to uncover U.S. persons who may be evading U.S. taxes by investing through foreign financial institutions (FI) or other foreign entities.

Countries refusing to comply run the risk of causing their financial institutions to be subject to a 30% withholding tax on both income and capital from US sources.