Banking and Insurance Special: Conventional banks enter Islamic banking sector

There has been growing interest recently among conventional banks in Egypt who own licences to provide Sharia-compliant services, to restructure their branches which offer such services. Banque Misr, National Bank of Egypt (NBE) and The Principal Bank for Development and Agricultural Credit (PBDAC) are among the traditional banks that offer Sharia-compliant services. Meanwhile, Islamic banks themselves are preparing to apply their new investment plans. Financing for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) has also seen a spike in interest so far this year, with conventional banks aiming to strike agreements with the Social Fund for Development (SFD) in order to increase their presence within the SME segment.