Egypt’s Orascom Financial Holding teams up with EXCEL to launch new fintech firm

Orascom Financial Holding announced on Tuesday it has teamed up with EXCEL to launch a new financial technology (fintech) company focused on digital payments.

In June, Orascom Investment Holding’s board approved a spine-off, aiming to separate its financial services operations to allow shareholders to make more targeted investments. The split was made official by the Egyptian Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) in September.

“This partnership marks an important step towards the implementation of the company’s strategy to achieve financial inclusion and digital transformation of the financial sector in Egypt,” Orascom said in a bourse filling on Tuesday.

OFH will own a 79.9 percent stake in the new fintech company which has a paid-up capital of 100 million Egyptian pounds ($6.3 million), with plans to raise its capital to 500 million pounds.

The new company aims to reach more than 1 million customers in the medium term, Orascom filling added.

Nils Bachtler, chief executive of OFH, said: “The new company is OFH’s first investment in the fintech field,”

Meanwhile, Ahmed Sarhan, chairman and chief executive of EXCEL, said: “This partnership aims to form a leading entity in the fintech field, to which EXCEL will avail its broad expertise in technological solutions to ensure it can offer the best services and customer experience.”