Islam Azzam, Chairperson of the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), said the authority views promoting financial literacy among young people and university students as a strategic investment in the future of the non-banking financial sector, supporting market expansion and fostering innovation.
He added that strengthening financial awareness helps prepare a generation that is better equipped to make informed financial and investment decisions amid rapid technological changes reshaping financial markets.
Azzam made the remarks during a visit to Cairo National University (CNU), organised as part of the FRA’s ongoing efforts to promote financial literacy and raise awareness among university students and young people. The visit followed an earlier trip by a delegation of professors and students, led by Mohamed Abdel Sadek, President of CNU, to the authority’s headquarters to gain insight into the FRA’s activities and its support for academic development.
The visit included an extensive discussion with students, during which Azzam delivered a simplified yet comprehensive overview of the FRA’s role in supervising and regulating the capital market, insurance sector and non-banking financial activities. These include consumer finance, mortgage finance, leasing, factoring, microfinance and financing for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Azzam also reviewed recent developments in Egypt’s non-banking financial sector, explaining the role of financial derivatives and the benefits of introducing such instruments to the stock market. He highlighted subsequent developments, including the launch of futures trading on stock indices, the anticipated activation of securities lending and borrowing mechanisms, and the introduction of market maker systems.
According to Azzam, these developments are expected to encourage greater participation by young people in stock market investment.
The FRA chairperson also pointed to increasing interest among young investors in gold and silver investment funds, noting that these funds recorded the strongest performance among investment vehicles during the first quarter of the year, with returns exceeding 20% quarter-on-quarter. He highlighted the FRA’s supervisory role over such funds, as well as other activities that have become increasingly significant to millions of Egyptians, including non-bank finance and insurance.
Azzam said the non-banking financial sector is undergoing rapid development in financial instruments, services and products, making continuous awareness and training initiatives increasingly important. He added that these efforts align with the state’s broader agenda to support financial inclusion, digital transformation and youth empowerment through greater access to opportunities within regulated financial markets.
For his part, Mohamed Abdel Aziz, Assistant Chairperson of the FRA, delivered a lecture outlining the authority’s responsibilities and its role in regulating non-banking financial markets while promoting market stability, efficiency and transparency.
He stressed the importance of direct engagement with students to build sound financial awareness among younger generations and deepen their understanding of how financial markets function.
Abdel Aziz also highlighted the FRA’s “I-Invest” platform, launched to improve public understanding of non-banking financial services and solutions and facilitate access to them through an interactive educational experience. The platform features stories of successful young investors while introducing users to the regulatory and supervisory frameworks governing activities overseen by the authority.
