Dr. Islam Azzam, EGX Chairman, participated at Alahram Conference “Fintech and Finance 2026” held today in Cairo. He delivered an opening speech emphasizing that The Egyptian Exchange marked an unprecedented boom in the field of digital transformation and Fintech, contributing to the development of Financial market, enhancing its efficiency and depth, attracting new segments of investors, especially youth.
Dr. Azzam clarified that issuance of Financial Technology law no. 5 of year 2022, along with other regulatory decisions issued by Financial Regulatory Authority, allowed simple and easy use of modern technologies for opening accounts electronically (E-KYC), digital identity, and digital contracts via mobiles. This directly reflected on expanding investors base, with youth representing about 80% of new registered accounts in The Egyptian Exchange during the recent period.
EGX Chairman highlighted having an ambitious plan for developing digital platforms, including updating EGX’s website within about 4 months, to provide investors with more inclusive and comprehensive data. Besides developing applications of EGX Stock Riders and EGX Gate soon. While the simulation application allows investors to experience virtual trading before investing real money, along with added new tools such as: financial derivatives, and securities lending mechanism for the purpose of short selling.
In related context, Azzam announced starting the project of converting format of financial statements of listed companies from PDF to Excel using data analysis tools, making it available in both Arabic and English languages, as well as processing them through artificial intelligence, and displaying them on EGX’s website, supporting investment decision-making and enhancing transparency levels.
He pointed out EGX preparations to implement the new trading system from NASDAQ next July, including trading of financial derivatives, carbon credits, and short selling. He highlighted that this update represents a qualitative leap regarding market’s efficiency and its operational capability, through faster orders’ execution, advanced operational flexibility of handling trading volumes and diversity, furtherly enhancing market’s readiness to accommodate new more developed instruments.
Azzam also mentioned the significant development of short selling mechanism, allowing lender to specify quantities and duration of lending, contributing to increased market’s liquidity, with 5 brokerage firms obtaining the required license.
EGX Chairman confirmed that the Financial market today is no longer managed by traditional mechanisms only, but also by an integrated digital system, in which technological applications became crucial factor enhancing efficiency and deepening of the market. He explained that digital transformation changed the way of investors’ interaction with the market, trading mechanisms, speed of information transfer, reshaping the relation between the investor and the fundamental infrastructure of the financial market.
He pointed out that there is a modern system for trading financial derivatives that relies on advanced technological infrastructure, having a Central Counterparty CCP as a key element for risk management, improving levels of security and efficiency, reducing counterparty risks, providing a more disciplined framework for derivatives.
It’s note-worthy to mention that EGX succeeded in developing an advanced local derivatives settlement system, with the possibility of future exporting it to neighbor countries. Also testing the system with approaching the actual time of implementation is going on one hand, with developing trading system of Government fixed income trading (GFIT) on the other hand.
Azzam clarified that mobile applications became the main contact point between investors and financial market, as it allows opening accounts, orders’ execution and monitoring portfolios, accessing real-time data, contributing to reducing costs, speeding decision-making, adding registration of about 299 thousand new investors during one year. This obviously indicate the role of digital applications in expanding investors base and deepening the market.
Regarding market performance, EGX Chairman pointed out the significant records achieved, as the market capitalization increased to reach about EGP3.28 Trillion. While the main index increased about 20% since beginning of the year, and 36% increase over the latest 7 months. Besides a notable increase in foreign investments, which positively reflected on the Global ranking of The Egyptian Exchange in international institutions.
Dr. Islam Azzam concluded his speech emphasizing that digital transformation in Financial market is not only a technological development, but also it’s a strategic choice: to build a modern financial market capable of deepening liquidity, and attracting long-term investments, strengthening position of The Egyptian Exchange regionally, within a comprehensive vision of a financial market operating with efficiency of digital economy and supporting sustainable investment.
