الهيئة العامة للرقابة المالية

Dr. Islam Azzam , FRA Chairman:

• Launching derivatives amid regional conditions signals the Egyptian market’s growth potential.
• Full EGX coordination is underway to launch futures contracts on listed stocks this June.
• Short-selling frameworks will be finalized soon, and activating “Market Makers” will significantly drive liquidity.
• Raising awareness is vital for new financial instruments, with rising youth interest expected in derivatives.

Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman reviewed the latest developments in Egypt’s capital market, highlighting the rollout of new financial mechanisms designed to deepen liquidity and boost market attractiveness. He shared these updates during his address at “Portfolio Egypt 2026” conference, organized by Al-Mal newspaper in partnership with London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

Dr. Azzam addressed the opening panel discussion, titled “Main Trends Shaping the Region’s ECM and DCM in 2026,” which brought together a distinguished lineup of regional financial leaders. The high-profile session featured insights from Omar Radwan, Executive Chairman of the Egyptian Exchange (EGX); Rami El-Dokany, Secretary-General of the Arab Federation of Capital Markets (AFCM) and Zahi Bsaibes, Head of Middle East Primary Markets at the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). Ahmed Darwish, Assistant Managing Director of Wholesale Banking at Attijariwafa Bank Egypt, moderated the discussion.

Dr. Islam Azzam emphasized that the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) continuously enhances regulatory and supervisory frameworks in line with international best practices. These efforts aim to boost the efficiency of non-banking financial markets mainly the capital market while expanding the investor base and diversifying investment instruments to drive economic growth and enhance financial inclusion.

He noted that the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) has experienced remarkable growth since last year, reflected in average daily trading volumes surpassing EGP 12 billion and total market capitalization soaring to over EGP 3.8 trillion – the highest in the market’s history.

Dr. Azzam added that launching financial derivatives amid current regional geopolitical conflicts, coupled with the EGX’s strong performance despite global economic volatility, sends a powerful, positive message. It underscores the stability of the Egyptian market and its vast potential for development in line with the national objectives of Egypt Vision 2030.

FRA Chairman explained that finalizing the financial derivatives ecosystem is a core pillar of Egypt’s capital market development strategy. This involves launching a futures market based on EGX30 index, activating Market Maker activities and finalizing the rollout of Short Selling mechanisms. The latter includes amending the Executive Regulations of the Capital Market Law to expand acceptable collateral types, ensuring greater flexibility for all market participants.

He stressed that full and ongoing coordination with the EGX is underway to launch futures contracts this June, initially targeting listed stocks within the banking and real estate sectors.

He added that these new mechanisms will provide sophisticated hedging and risk-management tools, deepening market liquidity and improving pricing efficiency, which will ultimately enhance the EGX’s attractiveness to both local and foreign investors. Meanwhile, the activation of the Market Maker system is expected to significantly drive daily liquidity rates.

Dr. Azzam expressed optimism that financial derivatives will primarily attract younger investors. He pointed out that the 18-to-40 age demographic recently accounted for roughly 79% of total EGX investors, a clear indicator of growing youth interest in financial instruments.

This trend, he noted, underscores the market’s pressing need for intensified financial literacy campaigns by both FRA and EGX. These initiatives will focus on building practical knowledge regarding new investment tools, raising awareness of listing and trading processes, and highlighting the vital role the capital market and non-banking financial sectors play in the national economy.

Furthermore, FRA Chairman reviewed ongoing efforts to upgrade the capital market’s technological infrastructure, which serves as a major draw for diverse investor segments worldwide. He highlighted an ambitious project currently underway at FRA to make all data and information across regulated markets available in both Arabic and English. This initiative targets three primary goals: attracting new investors by keeping them informed of ongoing developments, establishing seamless connectivity with market participants, and enabling FRA, Federations and companies to conduct advanced data analytics to support precise, future decision-making and elevate policy efficiency.