An electronic bill payment network was launched in Egypt last week. Mona El-Fiqi reports On 1 December, Fawry, a newly established banking and payment technology services company, launched its nationwide electronic bill payment network to support the growing demand by Egyptians for advanced bill payment facilities, bringing Egypt to the forefront of e-payment technology. The new service enables Egyptians to conveniently receive all their bills and pay them securely through a single, unified electronic network that is integrated with existing bank payment channels such as online banking systems, ATM machines, mobile banking systems, call centres and integrated voice response (IVR) systems. "The Fawry service has been launched in line with government initiatives to promote e- services and the Central Bank initiative to build, regulate and promote electronic small value payments to transform Egypt into an information economy which is underpinned by advanced electronic services that will change the way Egyptians have traditionally dealt with day-to-day functions," says Ashraf Sabri, Fawry CEO. "Today, we are witnessing a dynamic shift towards the adoption of electronic services in Egypt, such as the national identity card, driver's licence issuance and other e-government services. Fawry services are part of this framework and will contribute to adding more services to the portfolio of e- services. Fawry's service can immediately be used by Egyptians to receive and pay their bills electronically among an ever-growing list of billers and supporting banks. Banking institutions already engaged with the network include the Bank of Alexandria, Banque du Caire, Banque Misr, the Arab African International Bank, Credit Agricole Egypt, Commercial International Bank and the National Bank of Egypt. "The success of Fawry is driven by the adoption of a large number of billers and banks, to ensure that the largest part of the Egyptian population can benefit from it," says Magda Habib, chief commercial officer at Fawry. "We are in the process of getting onboard a significant number of new members across a diversity of services, ranging from social clubs to schools to utilities and insurance, ensuring that Egyptians are able to access and pay their bills with ease and complete security through Fawry." The Egyptian bill payment market is estimated at LE70-80 billion annually. Electronic payment services like those of Fawry enable bills to be quickly and efficiently transacted through the banking sector, which helps pull Egypt away from dependence on cash and strengthens the Egyptian economy. Another major impact of Fawry is increased productivity as Fawry eliminates the hassle and time needed to seek out bills and pay them, usually accompanied by long queues at bill enquiry and payment counters, in addition to improving efficiency in the collection and turnover of corporate receivables. A recent survey conducted by Ipsos Marketing Research showed that the majority of respondents (94.5 per cent) said they would like to see a service that allowed them to view, manage and pay all household bills from a single point of contact, while providing an annual record of paid bills and expected future bills.
