National Bank of Egypt (NBE)

The National Bank of Egypt (NBE) is Egypts largest commercial bank by total assets and one of Africas largest banks. NBE operates major SME lending programs including the CBE-backed Initiative for SMEs which provides loans at 5% interest rate, well below market rates. The bank is a leader in Egyptian trade finance and corporate banking and has expanded into pan-African operations through subsidiaries in Sudan and elsewhere. Egypt has 21 banks in the African top 100 by assets, with NBE among the leaders.