The electronic payment company E-Finance has entered into negotiations with Blom Bank Egypt, Crédit Agricole Egypt, The Arab Bank, the National Société Générale Bank (NSGB), the Arab Banking Corporation (ABC) and the Commercial International Bank (CIB) to provide them with Automated Clearing House (ACH) services. Ahmed Abu al-Dahab, administrative director of product management at E-Finance, said in a recent interview that E-Finance has agreed to provide ACH services to six banks in conjunction with the Egyptian Banks Company for Technological Advancement (EBC). This programme is expected to help increase the number of transactions run by banks, and will take effect immediately upon the signing of each contract. He added that E-Finance would also be cooperating with the Ahli United Bank and the Societe Arab International de Banque (SAIB) in providing ACH services. Egypt's Central Bank has entrusted the EBC with establishing electronic payment services throughout the country, with ACH services considered an integral part of the programme. Egypt's central bank has already begun the establishment of a real-time gross settlement system in Egypt in order to help better make available risk management tools regulating payments in Egypt's banking sector and guaranteeing the security of financial transactions in a way that meets international standards. The EBC has begun providing additional direct credit services, as the first stage of its ACH program, in order to better make transaction services available to individuals and companies, in addition to the more efficient distribution of salaries and pensions to government and private sector workers. This first stage will be followed by the creation of the company's direct debit programme, which will allow customers to be more easily able to pay their monthly bills and premiums.
