MENA report highlights CBE initiatives to ease repercussions of Covid-19

MENA report highlights CBE initiatives to ease repercussions of Covid-19

CAIRO - 23 February 2022: The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has launched a number of initiatives to mitigate repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic for the Egyptian economy. Proactive measures have also been taken, further alleviating the negative impact of Covid-19, which broke out in 2020. One of the most important CBE measures was to delay credit claims of clients for six months without additional returns or fines, according to a MENA report on Wednesday. The CBE then ordered banks to restructure debts of clients after the six-month period ended in September 2020, while taking into consideration activities harmed by the pandemic. Another important move by the CBE was its directive to secure finances needed to import strategic commodities and support sectors and companies that were most affected by the crisis. A credit squeeze was also created with the aim to bankroll net working capital (NWC), especially wages. The CBE also acted to encourage electronic payment through cancelling fees on cash withdrawal from ATMs, a measure that is set to last until June 2022. The CBE is seeking to promote some 200,000 QR codes for merchants and companies, and create banking incentives to encourage clients to use electronic payment tools.