Egypt

dopay Acquires Banking Licence Through Bank ABC Egypt

Payments fintech dopay has secured a banking agent licence from Bank ABC Egypt for a virtual banking platform, a statement from the company said.

The collaboration will allow dopay to offer its B2B payment and banking platform for SMEs and corporates in Egypt. The platform will allow businesses to open instant accounts for employees, contractors and beneficiaries, and make payments in real time. Each account comes with a debit card, and payments are processed on weekends and holidays.

dopay’s cloud payroll service lets employers remit salaries electronically to unbanked staff through a dopay account.

Founded in 2014, dopay is an UK-headquartered payments tech company, with clients including Dubai’s SPAC-bound Swvl. The company’s investors include Techstars and Tekton Ventures.

dopay Founder and CEO Frans van Eersel

“Being granted this licence will give our existing and prospective customers even more confidence in our ability to deliver the fast, convenient and secure cashless payment services they need to help grow their businesses, benefit their employees, and fulfil their ambitions.

It is also a vital next step to making our platform the foundation for delivery of many more new services to come,”

dopay Founder and CEO Frans van Eersel said.

Financial inclusion in Egypt

Egypt’s financial inclusion problem has drawn the attention of global entities such as the World Bank’s sister organisation International Financial Corporation (IFC). 67% of the Egyptian population remains unbanked, and cashless transactions comprise less than half of payments in the country.

Subsequently, this has made way for fintech development in the country. The IFC, for instance, recently partnered with the Egyptian Fintech Association to improve the fintech business environment in Egypt, and study the challenges and opportunities that fintech entrepreneurs encounter.

Digital banking is a germinating sub-sector within this fintech landscape. Digital banks such as dopay, Khazna, and Telda have been moving ahead with their offerings by partnering with local banks. However, a change last year in Egyptian banking law allowing fintechs to receive banking licences directly from the Central Bank of Egypt, is expected to drive a surge in similar fintech solutions.