In remarks at the RiseUp Summit 2025, Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority Chair Mohamed Farid set out the regulator’s “smart regulation” approach to supporting innovation and entrepreneurship across Egypt’s non-banking financial markets, positioning supervision as a facilitator of investor confidence rather than a burden on startups. Farid pointed to the authority’s activation of a temporary “Startup License” for startups operating in non-banking financial activities, including mortgage finance, consumer finance, financial leasing and factoring, enabling innovators to test business models in an organised and safe environment without having to meet all full-licensing requirements from the outset. He also flagged continued legislative development to accommodate new tools and activities, including real estate crowdfunding platforms and company valuation tools, alongside the authority’s broader remit across non-banking financial services such as capital markets, investment funds, settlement companies, and commodity exchanges.
Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority 2025-11-09
Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority highlights temporary Startup License and ongoing work to regulate non-bank finance innovation
Egypt Financial Regulatory Authority Chair Mohamed Farid proposed "smart regulation" to foster innovation in non-banking financial markets, emphasizing supervision for confidence-building. A temporary "Startup License" was introduced for sectors like mortgage and consumer finance, allowing model testing without full licensing. Legislative developments are underway to support new tools, including real estate crowdfunding and company valuation tools.