Banque Misr, Emirati e& launch EGP500 mln e-payments company

Banque Misr, Egypt’s second biggest state lender, and Etisalat by e& Egypt – and affiliate to Emirati Etisalat e&, have launched an electronic payments firm with a capital of 500 million Egyptian pounds ($16.17 million), sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg Asharq on Tuesday.

The electronic payments joint venture is expected to be launched before the end of this year, the sources further said. E& firm will hold more than 60 percent stake in the new company while the remaining stake will go to Banque Misr.

The electronic payments JV aims to cover different segments of the Egyptian market, as well as benefiting from the customer base of E& company, which has more than 31.6 million users, according to the company’s data last June.

Over the past few years, Egypt has seen the establishment of many e-payment companies, to benefit from the growing population in the largest Arab market. The Egyptian market employs about 22 firms in the field of electronic payments, including Fawry, Aman, and Al Ahly Momkn.