CBE launches contactless electronic payment service on smart devices

Ahram Online , Sunday 1 Feb 2026

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) announced on Sunday that it has launched its contactless electronic payment services through a Software Point of Sale (SoftPOS) application for smart devices.

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The service will allow merchants to receive payments from contactless cards by using smart devices such as mobile phones and tablets as electronic acceptance points.

The move supports the Central Bank of Egypt’s (CBE) strategy to transition to a cashless society and promote financial inclusion under Egypt’s Vision 2030. It also aims to strengthen the country’s digital financial infrastructure and provide flexible, low-cost electronic payment acceptance solutions via smartphones.

The service eliminates the purchase and maintenance costs of traditional point-of-sale (POS) terminals for payment service providers, companies, and merchants, while bringing small enterprises into the electronic payment ecosystem.

Cashless transactions in Egypt are expected to rise to $27.63 billion by 2027, growing at an annual rate of 14.03 percent, as e-wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Wallet become increasingly integrated into everyday transactions.

The bank also aims to “enable the infrastructure for the expansion of electronic payment systems and to facilitate financial transactions for citizens and merchants. This supports financial inclusion’s strides and enhances access to electronic financial services anytime and anywhere,” according to CBE Governor Hassan Abdalla.

A pilot phase of the service was launched in recent years, with a transaction limit of EGP 600.

The CBE reported an increase in financial inclusion rates in June 2025, with 76.3 percent of Egyptians aged 15 and above owning and using active financial accounts, up from 74.8 percent in December 2024. The growth was attributed to joint efforts with ministries and other stakeholders to enhance women’s economic participation by expanding access to financial services.

Egypt’s mobile wallet sector recorded rapid growth in the second quarter of 2025, with the number of financial transactions rising 80 percent year-on-year to 718 million. The total value of transactions climbed 72 percent to EGP 943 billion, up from EGP 548.6 billion a year earlier, while active wallets increased 29 percent to 46.3 million.

 

 

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