الهيئة العامة للرقابة المالية

Dr. Islam Azzam  Outlines Women’s Empowerment Strategies at Council of Arab Businesswomen –  Wednesday 30 September 2026

Dr. Islam Azzam – FRA Chairman:

• “Non-banking financial framework guarantees equal opportunities, driving substantial growth in women’s representation.”
• “Joint efforts are vital to establish anti-discrimination policies across all workplaces.”
• “The Authority is balancing market growth with enhanced consumer safeguards and financial awareness initiatives.”
• “Major investment opportunities are unfolding in Egypt’s capital market via derivatives and the upcoming short-selling rollout.”

Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman highlighted the tangible results of the Authority’s strategic drive for gender inclusion within the non-banking financial sector. By 2025, female representation on company boards climbed to 26.9% with 1,236 members, while Egyptian women’s participation across FRA-regulated financial activities witnessed unprecedented growth.

The address was delivered at the inauguration of the 8^th session of Council of Arab Businesswomen at the Arab League headquarters. The high-profile event was attended by Secretary-General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit, former Secretary-General Amr Moussa, Presidential Economic Advisor Dr. Hala El-Said, National Council for Women President Counselor Amal Ammar, GAFI Chairman Dr. Mohamed Awad, and President of Council Sheikha Hessa Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah, joined by senior officials and businesswomen from Egypt and Arab nations.

Dr. Islam Azzam explained that FRA translates equality and equal opportunity policies into practical enforcement through robust regulatory frameworks. Key initiatives include a 50% reduction in development and service fees for companies directing over 25% of their services to women, as well as reduced application and examination fees for issuing sustainable development securities and bonds—chiefly women’s empowerment bonds—incentivizing corporations to fund projects that advance women’s economic standing.

He highlighted FRA’s mandatory governance rules designed to secure fair female representation on corporate boards. He emphasized that integrating women into executive decision-making broadens organizational perspectives, drives operational performance and profitability and fosters professional growth.

FRA Chairman stressed the necessity of joint action to establish workplace anti-discrimination policies across all sectors, embed gender equality within supervisory regulations and advance women’s entrepreneurship. He also highlighted the importance of strengthening women’s academic, financial and technical skills to secure executive and leadership roles, while promoting the innovation of new financial instruments for economic empowerment and social protection.

In this context, he noted that by the end of the second quarter of this year, women’s representation reached approximately 52.8% of microfinance beneficiaries, totaling 1.8 million female beneficiaries out of 3.4 million nationwide, with outstanding financing balances granted to them reaching 39.7 billion pounds (Note: adjusting figure representation as 33.7 billion EGP), representing approximately 45.4% of total financing balances.

FRA Chairman noted that expanding women’s access to finance is being met with strengthened consumer protection safeguards to mitigate default, fraud and liquidation risks. He highlighted recent regulatory directives requiring OTP-based customer identity verification, instant data linking between lenders and credit registries and credit inquiries grounded in behavioral analytics.

He also highlighted the Authority’s continuous financial awareness efforts across two integrated tracks: first, educating women on safe, accessible opportunities for investment, financing, and economic empowerment; and second, raising awareness regarding customer rights, obligations, fraud prevention and legal grievance mechanisms to provide maximum safeguards for female clients.

Dr. Islam Azzam invited Arab Businesswomen and entrepreneurs to explore the latest developments in Egypt’s non-banking financial sector which present major investment opportunities, particularly within the Egyptian Exchange (EGX).

He shed light on the upcoming rollout—within a few weeks—of the short-selling mechanism, detailing its targeted objectives alongside margin trading to improve price discovery, stimulate trading, attract new investor segments and regulate hedge fund activity in Egypt for the first time. He also highlighted the launch of derivatives market last March, the introduction of futures contracts, and the pivotal role of the “market maker” mechanism moving forward to enhance market liquidity—especially following the recent tax package exempting this mechanism from stamp duty.

FRA Chairman concluded his address by emphasizing that true financial inclusion extends beyond mere access to services, products and investment avenues. Instead, it relies on evaluating their quality, suitability and tangible impact on the beneficiary, backed by comprehensive awareness of service features and the mutual rights and obligations of all parties.

FRA Issues Comprehensive Underwriting and Pricing Controls for Credit and Guarantee Insurance – Tuesday 29 September 2026

• Requiring a formal written underwriting policy: Backed by technical and actuarial methodologies to establish minimum pricing standards.
• Creditworthiness assessment factors, model validation, price-adequacy testing and semi-annual stress tests.

Dr. Islam Azzam,  FRA Chairman:

• “This decision follows extensive technical dialogue; we are committed to continually upgrading sector regulations.”
• “Safeguarding financial stability and strengthening risk management remain our top priorities.”
• “Credit and guarantee insurance portfolios must be managed by qualified, experienced personnel.”

Dr. Tarek Seif,  FRA Vice Chairman:

• “The Insurance Federation is drafting standard terms and minimum thresholds for all credit and guarantee policies to streamline operations.”

Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman has issued a comprehensive decree updating underwriting and pricing controls for credit and guarantee insurance policies. The decision aims to upgrade underwriting, pricing, reinsurance and risk management standards across the insurance sector, ensuring the highest levels of financial discipline and stability in alignment with the complexity of sector risks.

Decision No. 3132 of 2026 applies to property and liability insurance companies licensed to conduct credit and guarantee insurance, excluding commercial credit and guarantee insurance, whether domestic or export credit. The decision establishes clear requirements for mandatory risk retention and the participation of credit providers in the risks covered by insurance policies.

Under the decree, the insured party or credit provider must retain at least 25% of the outstanding balance of the financed amount or credit facility insured at the time of the insured event. This retained percentage cannot be insured, redistributed, or transferred to third parties— directly or indirectly—to prevent undermining its core risk-mitigation purpose. FRA also reserves the right to mandate higher retention rates for specific risk categories or portfolios based on loss ratios, default rates and concentration levels.

Furthermore, the decree strictly prohibits side agreements between insurers, insured parties or credit providers—whether through contracts, addendums, or unapproved arrangements—that directly or indirectly alter coverage scopes, reduce retention percentages, or modify claim payout terms contrary to FRA-approved wordings. Any modifications are null and void unless processed through official product-approval channels.

• Underwriting Policy Elements, Technical Methodology and Creditworthiness Assessment

Under the decree, insurers must establish a formal, Board-approved written underwriting policy for credit and guarantee insurance. This policy must set rigorous standards, including explicit criteria for risk acceptance and rejection, robust creditworthiness methodologies, mandatory retention ratios, required collateral and strict maximum exposure limits. Furthermore, companies must enforce stringent concentration limits across single obligors, connected groups, credit providers, economic sectors and financing types. To ensure sound governance, the framework must also integrate formal default monitoring, recovery and collection rules, comprehensive reinsurance policies, and early warning indicators tied to mandatory corrective actions whenever defined thresholds are breached.

The new rules mandate that companies establish a technical and actuarial methodology to determine a minimum technical pricing floor for all credit and guarantee policies, guaranteeing that premiums adequately cover associated risks and operational costs. When establishing this minimum pricing floor, insurers must factor in default probability, exposure at default where applicable, recovery rates, coverage ratios, retention ratios, financing or facility duration, along with the nature and value of collateral. They must also account for risk and uncertainty margins, expenses, commissions, production costs and reinsurance costs.

The decree strictly bans issuing or renewing any policy below this minimum technical price, while allowing companies to charge higher commercial rates based on internal policy.

To accurately estimate default probabilities for individuals, legal entities and project finance, companies are required to factor in official credit scores issued by licensed credit bureaus as a baseline, alongside financial burden indicators such as debt-service-to-income ratios and other statistically or actuarially significant variables. Furthermore, companies must ensure continuous validation of the relationship between these variables and actual default rates using reliable data and practical experience.

Meanwhile, companies must utilize risk-appropriate indicators to estimate default probabilities for legal entities and project finance, focusing specifically on credit ratings or scores, cash flows, liquidity and solvency metrics, debt-servicing capacity, collateral coverage ratios, and economic sector risk profiles.

Furthermore, when reliable historical experience is available, companies are required to compare the risk cost derived from their pricing models against actual historical loss costs for similar risks or portfolios—after standardizing the coverage basis and making necessary adjustments to ensure comparability. Insurers must also conduct annual back-testing and periodic model validation to verify the efficacy of their price-adequacy testing models and the accuracy of their projections.

• Periodic Review and Internal Concentration Risk Limits

To ensure the stability of the methodologies and technical thresholds governing underwriting and pricing policies, the decree mandates that the company’s Board of Directors annually approve an actuarial expert report. This report must detail the pricing methodology, minimum technical rate floors, underlying assumptions and parameters, calibration bases, and the results of model testing and validation.

Companies must formally notify FRA with supporting documents and data before implementing these technical thresholds. Required disclosures include the minimum rate schedule categorized by product nature, credit tier levels, debt-burden brackets, collateral types, coverage ratios, retention percentages, financing durations, the actuarial report, calibration data and regulatory testing results.

Companies are required to update and submit their technical studies and thresholds to FRA annually, or immediately upon any material change in loss patterns, default or recovery rates, underwriting policies, credit data sources, actuarial methods, or core modeling assumptions.

Extending these governance requirements, companies must establish approved internal limits for concentration risk covering, at a minimum, single obligors, connected groups, credit providers, economic sectors, financing types, and reinsurers, while strictly complying with established regulatory controls and ratios.

A company’s exposure to a single client or connected group cannot exceed 10% of the active or outstanding credit and guarantee insurance portfolio’s insured amounts, or the capital allocated to the branch’s liabilities, whichever is lower.

Furthermore, business ceded to the company from a single credit provider cannot exceed 50% for banks and 30% for other credit providers relative to the branch’s total insured amounts, unless prior FRA approval is obtained.

The volume of credit and guarantee insurance premiums must not exceed 25% of the company’s total gross written premiums at year-end without prior approval from the FRA.

FRA may approve exceptions to these thresholds based on a technical and actuarial study covering, at a minimum, the impact on solvency, stress test results, reinsurance quality, concentration levels, loss and default rates and the company’s capacity to absorb risk.

To further mitigate risk concentration and ensure credit stability, the decree requires companies to ensure that their reinsurance program for the credit and guarantee portfolio is proportional to the nature and scale of risks assumed. When designing reinsurance programs and selecting reinsurers, companies must evaluate reinsurer solvency, credit ratings, exposure size, collectability of receivables, and concentration risks, while strictly preventing unjustified, material concentration with a single reinsurer.

• Controls Reinforcing FRA’s Commitment to Insurance Sector Growth

Highlighting the new regulations and their targeted impact on Egypt’s insurance market, Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA stated that the decree was issued following extensive community and technical dialogue with insurance and reinsurance companies. This demonstrates FRA’s commitment to continuously upgrading insurance regulations, safeguarding companies’ financial stability, strengthening their capacity to navigate market risks, and enhancing technical and professional efficiency—particularly since credit insurance plays a vital role in credit risk management.

FRA Chairman added that the new controls feature detailed, clear and rigorous standards that fully align with the Unified Insurance Law No. (155) of 2024 and regulatory decisions issued over the past three years. They also adapt to economic shifts and sector developments by equipping the regulatory framework with enhanced tools to support operational efficiency.

In this context, he pointed to the decree’s mandate requiring companies to conduct stress testing and scenario analysis for their credit and guarantee portfolios at least semi-annually, or whenever material shifts occur in risk size or nature. This is designed to monitor default, recovery, and loss rates, evaluate concentration spikes with single financing entities, and track the default or credit downgrades of key reinsurers—thereby enabling FRA to mandate corrective action plans if portfolio deterioration indicators emerge.

Dr. Islam Azzam stressed the obligation of companies to assign credit and guarantee portfolio management—spanning underwriting, pricing, claims, and risk control—to qualified professionals whose expertise matches the scale and complexity of the business. FRA plans to issue a follow-up directive detailing technical qualification standards, accompanied by secondary regulations defining key metrics such as loss ratios, net liabilities, connected groups, early warning thresholds, and actuarial baseline requirements.

For his part, Dr. Tarek Seif, FRA Vice Chairman noted that the new regulations introduce critical advancements that balance insurance company portfolios, ensure early risk detection across all forms, drive continuous updates based on clear and FRA-approved technical foundations, and curb loss rates.

He added that the Egyptian Insurance Federation will play a pivotal role in enforcing the decree by drafting standard terms and minimum thresholds for all credit and guarantee policies. This draft will outline baseline definitions, coverage scopes, retention percentages, exclusions, and claim payout conditions, and will be submitted to FRA for review and approval before implementation, thereby facilitating operations for companies to execute the new controls seamlessly.

Regarding the requirement to perform I-Score checks prior to policy issuance or renewal and incorporate the results into risk pricing, Dr. Tarek Seif announced that FRA will release a follow-up directive. The forthcoming rules will define default parameters, debt restructuring, dispute mechanisms, data retention, and confidentiality, facilitating the real-time reporting of credit defaults and non-payments through a dedicated electronic platform.

Companies are required to align their operations with the provisions of this decree within a 6-month grace period starting upon its upcoming publication in the Official Gazette. The decree’s provisions will apply to policies issued for the first time or renewed after the grace period expires, without compromising rights and obligations arising from pre-existing active policies.

Clear standards and strict controls to enhance reinsurance and risk management policies.

FRA Chairman Explores Expanded Capacity-Building Initiatives with Union of Arab Securities Authorities – Saturday 26 September 2026

Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman:

• Short selling is to be launched, backed by ongoing central lending training for market participants.
• Capital market development is essential amid surging trading volumes and investor growth.
• Trading values in Q2 2026 exceeded 6.4 trillion Egyptian pounds, surging 78.3% compared to Q2 2025.
• “Market maker” mechanism is a top priority; new instruments will enhance liquidity levels and stimulate trading activity.

Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman received Mr. Jalil Tarif, Secretary-General of the Union of Arab Securities Authorities (UASA), accompanied by Dr. Tarek Seif, FRA Vice Chairman and several senior Authority officials. The meeting explored ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in awareness, training and capacity-building through the Financial Services Institute (FSI)—

FRA’s training arm—and the Regional Center for Sustainable Finance and Carbon Markets.

The discussions reviewed the positive outcomes achieved by training programs under the memorandum of understanding between the Regional Center and the Union. These programs focus on exchanging technical expertise, qualifying cadres across Arab countries, and sharpening skills to handle green financial instruments, formulate sustainable finance and carbon market strategies and promote responsible investment—initiatives that have earned widespread acclaim from beneficiaries and specialists.

Discussions also addressed expanding cooperation by launching new, diverse training programs to transfer Egyptian expertise to non-banking financial sector cadres in other Arab nations. These initiatives will cover fintech, financial derivatives and carbon markets—a sector where Egypt has established a pioneering regulatory and governance framework, completing the foundational rules for the voluntary carbon market as the first regulated and monitored market of its kind in Africa.

Dr. Islam Azzam highlighted FRA’s latest regulatory milestones in capital markets and investment funds, announcing that “short-selling” operations will officially launch within a few weeks. This follows the completion of the central lending system, full technical integration between Misr for Central Clearing, Depository and Registry (MCDR) and brokerage firms, and the simulated training of market participants on the system.

FRA Chairman detailed the new regulatory framework for short selling, issued under Board Decision No. (155) of 2026 which establishes robust rules ensuring full transparency, corporate governance and the protection of all stakeholders in alignment with global best practices. He emphasized that the upcoming short-selling rollout caps a comprehensive modernization of capital market instruments, following the launch of the derivatives market last March, the introduction of futures contracts on key exchange-traded stocks, and the regulation of hedge funds for the first time—allowing them to execute short selling, invest in derivatives and utilize other high-liquidity instruments.

Dr. Islam Azzam highlighted that ongoing market development is essential for bolstering liquidity, refining price discovery, and diversifying investment options. He pointed to robust market growth fueled by an addition of over 171,000 new investor accounts by the close of Q2 2026, alongside trading values scaling to 6.4 trillion Egyptian pounds—a 78.3% jump from the same period last year.

FRA Chairman also outlined key priorities for the upcoming phase, notably the market maker mechanism. He highlighted its vital role in stimulating trading and enhancing liquidity, especially following the recent tax package exempting the mechanism from stamp duty, and noted that the Authority is exploring additional incentives for market makers to spur institutional investment, coinciding with the upcoming listing and offering of major state-owned enterprises on the Egyptian Exchange.

For his part, Mr. Jalil Tarif praised FRA’s continuous efforts to develop Egypt’s non-banking financial sector while expanding awareness initiatives, training programs and investor protection. He commended the Authority’s active role within the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) and the Arab Union in fostering regulatory coordination, combating market manipulation and fraud, and addressing anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF).

The Union’s Secretary-General also shared and discussed legislative and regulatory updates concerning capital markets across Arab nations, focusing on challenges related to technological advancement, the expansion of fintech, online trading platforms and cyber risks. He stressed the importance of ongoing consultation, cooperation and information sharing among union members, alongside expanded training and capacity-building programs to elevate market efficiency and transparency.