Total financial position of banks operating in Egypt rises to EGP 24.1trn in 2025: CBE

2026-03-28 - 16:31

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said the total financial position of banks operating in the Egyptian market, excluding the central bank, rose to EGP 24.122trn in 2025, underscoring continued expansion in the sector’s balance sheet and overall financial intermediation. In its latest report, the CBE provided a detailed breakdown of banks’ asset composition, highlighting the scale and diversification of the sector. Cash balances held by banks amounted to EGP 160.420bn, while interbank balances within the domestic market reached EGP 2.713trn, reflecting active liquidity management among local institutions. In addition, balances with banks abroad stood at EGP 1.906trn, pointing to sustained cross-border banking activity. Customer lending remained a key driver of asset growth, with loans and discount balances totalling EGP 10.377trn in December 2025. Meanwhile, banks continued to maintain substantial exposure to sovereign instruments, with investments in securities and treasury bills reaching EGP 7.825trn. Other assets were recorded at EGP 1.139trn. On the liabilities side, the report showed a solid capital and funding base across the banking sector. Banks’ capital reached EGP 716.751bn, supported by reserves totalling EGP 1.074trn and provisions amounting to EGP 686.442bn. Interbank obligations in the domestic market stood at EGP 1.750trn, while liabilities to foreign banks reached EGP 628.126bn. Customer deposits remained the primary funding source, rising to EGP 15.767trn. In parallel, bonds and long-term loans totalled EGP 954.244bn, while other liabilities stood at EGP 2.544trn. Asset quality and provisioning The CBE highlighted a continued improvement in asset quality indicators, with the non-performing loans (NPL) ratio declining to 1.9% in December 2025, compared to 2% in September. This reflects the banking sector’s resilience and prudent credit risk management amid evolving economic conditions. At the level of the largest institutions, the NPL ratio stood at 1.7% for the top 10 banks and 1.4% for the top five banks, indicating stronger asset quality among leading players. Provisioning coverage also improved, reaching 90.2% of total NPLs in December, up from 89.4% three months earlier. The ratio rose to 93.2% for the top 10 banks and 94.9% for the top five, reflecting a high degree of precaution in recognising potential credit losses. The total volume of provisions set aside by banks reached EGP 686.442bn. Of this, the top 10 banks accounted for EGP 574.997bn, while the top five banks held EGP 518.704bn. In addition, total reserves across the sector stood at EGP 1.074trn, with the largest banks accounting for the bulk of these buffers. Private sector lending trends Despite overall credit growth, the share of lending directed to the private sector declined to 41.9% of total loans in December 2025, compared to 43% in September. The ratio stood at 35.9% for the top 10 banks and 31.9% for the top five, suggesting a continued concentration of lending in other segments, including government-related activities. Nevertheless, the total loan portfolio expanded significantly, with loans and discount balances rising to EGP 10.377trn, up from EGP 9.761trn in September, an increase of approximately EGP 616bn over the three-month period. Loan balances at the top 10 banks reached EGP 8.171trn, while the top five banks accounted for EGP 7.497trn, highlighting the dominant role of large institutions in credit provision. Loan-to-deposit dynamics The loan-to-deposit ratio (LDR) increased to 66.4% in December 2025, compared to 64.3% in September, indicating a gradual expansion in lending relative to deposit growth. The ratio reached 67.3% among the top 10 banks and 70.6% for the top five banks. In local currency, the LDR rose to 61%, up from 56.1%, reflecting stronger utilisation of domestic liquidity. By contrast, the foreign currency LDR declined to 85.4%, compared to 91.2%, suggesting a more cautious approach to foreign currency lending. Deposit growth and liquidity Customer deposits continued to grow, reaching EGP 15.767trn in December 2025, compared to EGP 15.324trn in September, an increase of EGP 443bn over the quarter. The top 10 banks accounted for EGP 12.271trn of total deposits, representing 77.827%, while the top five banks held EGP 10.688trn, or 67.787%. This reflects the high level of concentration within the banking sector. The ratio of deposits to total assets remained stable at 65.5%, indicating a consistent funding structure. Meanwhile, liquidity indicators showed mixed trends. The average liquidity ratio in local currency declined slightly to 40.3%, from 40.9%, while the foreign currency liquidity ratio increased to 79.5%, from 77.8%. Among the largest banks, local currency liquidity stood at 40.5% for the top 10 and 38.3% for the top five, while foreign currency liquidity reached 82.2% and 82.5%, respectively. Investment in securities and government instruments Banks’ investments in securities and treasury bills rose to EGP 7.825trn in December 2025, up from EGP 7.662trn in September, marking an increase of EGP 163bn. However, the distribution of these investments showed some divergence. Holdings by the top 10 banks declined slightly to EGP 6.185trn, from EGP 6.219trn, while those of the top five banks fell to EGP 5.345trn, from EGP 5.472trn. The ratio of securities portfolios, excluding treasury bills, to total assets increased to 21.9%, compared to 20.3% in the previous quarter. This ratio reached 23.4% for the top 10 banks and 24.6% for the top five, reflecting a relatively higher allocation to non-T-bill instruments among larger institutions. Capital adequacy and resilience The CBE reported further strengthening in capital buffers across the banking sector. The capital adequacy ratio rose to 19.6% in December 2025, up from 19.2% in September, remaining well above regulatory requirements. Tier 1 capital increased to 16.5%, compared to 16.1%, while the core capital ratio rose to 14.5%, from 14%. At the level of the top 10 banks, the capital adequacy ratio stood at 19.3%, while it reached 18.8% for the top five banks. The leverage ratio stood at 7.6%, slightly down from 7.7% in September, but still comfortably above the minimum regulatory threshold of 3%, indicating strong capital positioning relative to total exposures. Foreign currency exposure Net open foreign currency positions declined to 4.6% of the total capital base in December 2025, compared to 5.2% in September. The ratio stood at 5.7% for the top 10 banks and 6.5% for the top five banks. The CBE noted that these levels remain well within the regulatory ceiling, which stipulates that net open foreign currency positions must not exceed 20% of the capital base, highlighting contained foreign exchange risk across the sector.