Banque Misr announced on Thursday new programmes to finance micro, small and medium enterprises in the coming months, state-owned news agency MENA reported. The first programme would finance the commercial, industrial and services activities of micro and small projects through granting loans of EGP 1,000 to EGP 50,000, to be repaid over two years on monthly instalments. The bank said the programme demonstrates its keenness to fund projects that create sustainable job opportunities and increase the country's production and income, according to MENA. In its second programme, Banque Misr would finance machinery and equipment of small projects through short and medium term loans ranging from EGP 50,000 to EGP 2m. The loan is set to be repaid over a period up to five years through monthly or quarterly instalments. For medium-sized projects, the bank will provide loans up to EGP 30m to finance individual enterprises and companies in commercial, industrial and services projects, with a seven-year limit on repayment. The state-owned bank also announced its participation in the Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) mortgage finance initiative which allocated EGP 10bn to finance low-income housing projects with the aim of boosting the real estate and construction sectors. Banque Misr's deposits rose to EGP 188.8bn in fiscal year 2012/2013 compared to EGP 162.5bn in the preceding year, reflecting a 16.2% increase. Earlier in December, Banque Misr signed a EGP 285m loan agreement with the Upper Egypt Electricity Production Company (UEEPC) to fund renovations and replacements for the boiler in Assiut's power station, which operates at a capacity of 624 MW. This was the first loan that Ministry of Electricity received from the bank to use Islamic financing, and was scheduled to be repaid over 80 months.
