Egyptian state-owned bank, National Bank of Egypt (NBE) revealed that its retail banking portfolio reached 123 billion Egyptian pounds at the end of December 2020, compared to 90.7 billion pounds in December 2019, according to the bank's Chairperson Hisham Okasha. He added that latest figures reflect a growth rate of 35 percent, indicating that the bank aims to reach 143 billion pounds by the end of December 2021. NBE has seen its customer deposits portfolio reach 1.8 trillion pounds at the end of December 2020, he noted. However, the bank's total volume of loans that it has provided to customers reached 866 billion pounds, with an employment rate of 47 percent. Okasha also said that the NBE's customer base reached about 15.4 million in December 2020, an increase of 1.7 million customers compared to December 2019. He added that men in the age group of 21-36 represent about 31 percent of the bank's depositors, while females represent 41 percent. He said that the bank installed 16 new disabled-friendly ATMs as part of its strategy to support its customers with disabilities and visual impairment. The introduction of the new machines allows this customer segment to fully and easily benefit from all the services provided by ATMs without the need for assistance. He also said that the number of the bank's ATMs stood at 4,941 in December 2020, an increase of 705 from December 2019. A total of 66 percent of the new ATMs are located outside the Greater Cairo. In addition, The bank aims to increase the number to 6,500 ATMs by the end of 2023. He added that the bank opened 38 new branches during 2020, bringing its network of branches to 541 at the end of December 2020. The NBE aims to reach 700 branches by the end of December 2023.
