After meeting all Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) standards and receiving a US $2.2 million pre-seed fundraising round, Egyptian fintech and next-generation banking firm Nexta is prepared to initiate operations.
Nexta, a digital bank founded by Ibrahim Farag and Ahmed Hisham in 2021, aims to improve Egyptians’ everyday lives by delivering “lifestyle banking.” A Nexta card, in addition to providing an unprecedented digital experience, collects a user’s existing payment cards and enables money transfers, with a slew of more functions to come.
Nexta is also announcing a relationship with Visa, as well as cooperation with one of Egypt’s and Africa’s major state-owned banks. Disruptech led the US $2.2 million pre-seed fundraising round, which included significant international backers.
“We are proud to secure the trust of the CBE and Visa, and this is only the beginning. This is shaping up to be a highly competitive market. We await the formal announcement of the EKYC and Digital Banking Guidelines to be one of the early applicants. This is a vast market, and we are leading the wave,” said Farag.
Visa’s Egypt national manager, Malak ElBaba, said he was “delighted” to work with Nexta since it fits with the company’s aim of supporting fintech firms as accelerators of financial inclusion.
“Nexta needed a partner that was committed to supporting their breakthrough into the market and delivering something truly distinctive. That’s where Visa is able to support with its global network capabilities and cross-market expertise,” he said.
