Banque Misr signed €250 million credit agreement with EIB for SMEs

CAIRO – 9 December 2017: Banque Misr signed a new credit agreement with The European Investment Bank (EIB) at a value of €250 million ($294.3 million) to finance micro, small and medium sized enterprises projects.

Sahar Nasr, Minister of International Cooperation and Investment witnessed the signing ceremony during the 2017 Africa Forum, held in Sharm El-Sheikh on Saturday.

Banque Misr, the debtor, will receive the loan in installments within two years, Chairman of Banque Misr Mohamed Eletreby said, adding that his bank’s portfolio for the SMEs amounted to LE 7 billion ($393.6 million).

Egypt launched the 2017 African Forum on Thursday, which continues till December 9, under the name of “Business for Africa, Egypt and the World.”
Banque Misr, Egypt’s second largest state-owned bank financed LE 4.4 billion to SMEs and micro projects in June 2017, the bank stated in late November.

In cooperation with the Ministry of Local Development, Banque Misr has financed SMEs through 308 local units across Egypt since March 2015.

Egypt started the strategy aimed at enhancing the micro and SME sector. The central Bank of Egypt announced an initiative to fund Egyptian SMEs with LE 200 billion.

Micro-projects received LE 1.3 billion in funds from Banque Misr, distributed amongst nearly 60,000 clients at the end of June.