Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority convenes consumer finance firms to tackle financial fraud and warns against unlicensed providers

The Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority hosted a workshop for the non-banking financial sector focused on the risks of financial fraud in consumer finance and practical ways to counter it. The session, held as part of a wider series of meetings with consumer finance companies and service providers, brought together representatives from the Egyptian Consumer Finance Federation, regulated firms and service providers. Participants discussed fraud typologies and shared best practices for protecting customers, while the authority set out supervisory efforts undertaken in recent periods to mitigate fraud, deception and misrepresentation risks. The regulator also reiterated its public warnings across media and digital channels urging citizens not to engage with financing or investment solicitations from unlicensed entities. The authority noted that around 34 companies are licensed for consumer finance activity alongside 12 service providers, with the activity governed by Consumer Finance Law No. 18 of 2020. It also referenced a “negative list” first published in May, based on complaints about entities carrying out non-banking financial activities in breach of applicable rules, which will be updated periodically, and highlighted dedicated email inboxes for suspected fraud complaints and for firms seeking confirmation that their business models meet legislative and regulatory requirements.