BPC : Closing the gap in financial inclusion and digital banking in Egypt & the Levant
Creating a connected banking ecosystem is crucial in helping to create better financial inclusion , says BPC COO , Usama Elsayed
Financial services and banking in the Middle East and Levant has undergone massive shifts over the past two years . Usama Elsayed , COO of the global leading fintech company BPC , explains how the transformation is playing out in the MENA region .
With its core philosophy centred on ‘ bridging real life to digital banking and payments ’, BPC provides banks , processors , fintech ’ s , transport operators and other ecosystem players with the right technology to create relevant services for their customers .
Egypt is one of the fastest growing payment markets in the region and has a population of 105 million inhabitants . This is more than 25 % of the total population of the Middle East and North Africa region . Almost three quarters of the Egyptians are under the age of 40 . are shopping more online now than before , since the start of the pandemic .
With an estimated unbanked population of 44 million people in Egypt alone , the task of improving the financial inclusion situation in the region is a challenging one . He explains , “ Our motto is bridging real life to digital , and we have always had financial inclusion as a big part of our activities . We create technology for a purpose and we wanted to make an impact on people ’ s lives .”
New events on the horizon for BPC
BPC has transformed over the years from a payments player there to a digital ecosystem builder and already drives some marketplace initiatives in the Agri sector . The growth and direction of the company in future , will be very much guided by the ever changing demands of the consumer , he says .
Elsayed concludes , “ We want to be a force to drive economic growth , people development , and creating win -win ecosystems . You will be able to see us where we feel we can make an impact in the world we live in .”
“ It ’ s a youthful population ,” says Elsayed . “ And this means that those people are highly receptive of the digital economy .” He points out that for online commerce , more than 70 % of the Egyptian consumers