Egypt's main agricultural lender, the Egyptian Agricultural Bank has pumped funds of 605 million Egyptian pounds to 1314 clients by the end October 2018 as part of Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) initiative to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), its Chairman ElSayed ElKosayer. He told Amwal Al Ghad that the bank's clientele mostly consists of SMEs owners. In 2016, the CBE announced an initiative to finance SMEs. Under the initiative, 20 per cent of bank loans should be allocated to SMEs within four years. The banks are to offer around 200 billion pounds to finance 350,000 companies and thus create job opportunities for more than four million people. Interest rates will be less than the five per cent on loans given to youth initiatives. The banks participating in the four-year program will be able to deduct the loans from their required reserves at the CBE. On the other hand, Agricultural Bank of Egypt, has signed a deal with The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA) worth 50 million Egyptian pounds ($2.791 million).
