BKN301, a fintech firm offering Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) solutions with a focus on high-growth markets, continues its internationalisation with the opening of a new office and landing in Egypt.
BKN301’s expansion into Egypt is a strategic move thanks to Egypt’s Vision 2030 programme, which sees the introduction of new government initiatives aimed at improving financial inclusion across the population. The fintech also revealed that Egypt’s geographic location will enable it to reach the North African market.
A new dedicated office in Cairo has also been established, reinforcing the company’s position as an open-market and cross-border operator in the open banking and digital payments sector in the MENA region.
The news follows BKN301’s opening in Qatar in September 2022 and its partnership with Egypt-based electronic payment solutions company Damen. Damen offers over 500 financial payment services, including paying electricity, gas, water, phone and internet bills, charity, paying institute and university fees, as well as paying for flight reservations, loan instalments, and transferring money.
Stiven Muccioli, founder and CEO of BKN301, comments: “Our presence in Egypt is a key part of our growth strategy. It allows us to be directly present in a country that has made financial inclusion a government objective to be achieved by 2030 and a privileged point of contact for the North African economy.
“The growth of these areas passes through the development of advanced financial services that must be accessible to all, and our aim is to provide them with an offer that meets this need.”
Egypt’s Central Bank revealed that between 2016 and 2022, there was a 147 per cent increase in the number of bank account holders, Egyptian Post accounts, digital wallets and prepaid cards. This number rose to over 42 million users – 64.8 per cent of the total population aged 16 and over.
BKN301 will hope to support this growth by also offering services that the increasingly financially included population need in the region.
