Egypt’s largest public lender, the National Bank of Egypt (NBE), has received a $700 million (EGP 5.5 billion) loan from the China Development Bank to finance infrastructure projects in different sectors, state news agency MENA reported on Thursday, citing the bank’s deputy Mahmoud Montasser.
The NBE will repay the loan over eight years, including a three-year grace period, according to Montasser.
The loan, which will be invested in energy, agriculture and telecom, was signed in January during President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi’s visit to China.
The bank aims to raise its funding portfolio to reach EGP 65 billion by 2020, up from EGP 19 billion in 2015, as part of its efforts to bolster small and medium-size enterprises.
