Egypt Credit Cards

By: EconomyWatch Content   Date: 29 October 2009

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Egypt credit cards are more popular in tourist destinations and big cities such as Cairo and Alexandria. However, small cities and towns lack supporting infrastructure. Thus, people prefer to pay in cash.

Egypt Credit Cards: Market Watch

Egypt credit cards are not the most preferred mode of transaction. Some of the reasons for the low popularity of credit cards in the Egyptian markets are:

  • Low education level

  • Low purchasing power capacity

  • Only a small population has access to internet

  • Plastic money frauds

According to market research conducted by globaltechforum.eiu.com, Egyptians do not trust credit card transactions. Even consumers making online reservations for travel or movies prefer home delivery of tickets. Payments are made at the time of delivery.

To prevent credit card fraud and to restore faith in plastic money, the Central Bank of Egypt gave license to 11 private sector banks in 2007. The list includes world banking giants like Citigroup and HSBC. To strengthen ecommerce services, government has approved special credit card and debit card products, which are specifically made for online transactions. Furthermore, these products are also available to teenagers and adults with poor credit ratings.

Egypt Credit Cards: Issuers

The most popular financial institutions that issue Egypt credit cards are:

  • American Express

  • Arab Bank

  • Arab Banking Corporation (ABC)

  • Arab International Bank

  • Bank of Alexandria

  • BNP Paribas

  • Calyon Bank Egypt

  • Citibank

  • Credit Agricole Egypt

  • HSBC

  • National Société Générale Bank (NSGB)

American Express provides credit card products directly. However, other banks have associations with MasterCard, Diners Club and Visa Inc for offering credit card services.

Egypt credit cards are available in different variants, such as classic, gold, platinum, titanium and signature credit cards. Financial institutions offer different credit cards to individuals and corporate consumers. Users are eligible for various rewards, including cash back, air miles, travel benefits, zero percent balance transfer or interest free period during initial months.

Most financial institutions offer online banking services. Consumers can use Egypt credit cards to pay online for phone bills, bookings and shopping. With the development of ecommerce, credit card usage is expected to rise for both retail and online shopping.


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