Egyptian Banks to Offer Free Account Opening Until August 15th

Banks across Egypt will offer free account opening with no minimum balance requirement from August 3rd to 15th as part of the Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) financial inclusion activities marking Global Youth Day.

Under guidance issued by the CBE, banks are also encouraged to operate outside their branches to promote banking products, provided the locations are reported to the central bank's banking affairs sector. Participating banks are expected to issue prepaid and debit cards for new customers and encourage them to activate and use the cards for purchases.

The youth campaign forms part of the CBE's annual financial inclusion calendar, which also includes dedicated initiatives for women from March 8th to 31st, the Arab Financial Inclusion campaign in April, farmers from September 1st to 15th, savings from October 15th to 31st, and persons with disabilities from December 1st to 15th.

According to CBE data, financial inclusion in Egypt reached 77.6% by the end of 2025, with 54.7 million people out of 70.5 million adults aged 15 and above holding active financial accounts. Between 2017 and 2025, banks opened approximately 9.8 million new accounts, issued 9.3 million prepaid cards and launched around 3.1 million mobile wallets through financial inclusion campaigns.