Banks in Egypt adopt ISO 20022 standard for interbank transfers – CBE

Egypt’s banking sector has adopted the international ISO 20022 messaging standard for interbank financial transfers, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said on Sunday, as part of efforts to modernise the country’s payments infrastructure.

The new SWIFT messaging standard took effect on 21 June and has been implemented across banks operating in Egypt, the central bank said in a statement.

CBE Governor Hassan Abdalla said the move forms part of the bank’s strategy to upgrade payment systems and improve the efficiency of Egypt’s Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system.

“The adoption of ISO 20022 lays the foundation for modern financial services, including open banking and advanced data analytics,” Abdalla said.

ISO 20022 is a global financial messaging standard that enables more structured payment data, helping to improve transaction processing and reduce manual intervention.

The central bank said the upgrade would improve cross-border payment processing through higher levels of straight-through processing (STP) and strengthen transaction screening for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing compliance.

It added that Egypt’s RTGS system has been upgraded to align with the new standard as part of broader efforts to modernise financial infrastructure and support digital transformation.

Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English