Commercial International Bank – Egypt (CIB) announced that it received preliminary approval from the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) to establish “yomo” as a digital bank, in line with Egypt’s digital banking framework introduced in 2023.
The approval marks an important milestone in the development of Egypt’s banking sector, paving the way for a new generation of digitally native banks designed to make banking simpler, more intuitive and more accessible for millions of customers, whether they are managing everyday finances, saving for the future or building businesses that contribute to economic growth.
Backed by CIB’s strength, governance and 50 years of banking experience, yomo aims to combine the trust of Egypt’s leading private-sector bank with the speed, accessibility and customer focus of a digitally native bank.
The preliminary approval enables yomo to enter the next phase of operational, technological and customer readiness ahead of the launch of its services, subject to obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals.
Hisham Ezz Al-Arab, Group Chief Executive of CIB, said the launch of yomo presents a significant commercial opportunity for the bank’s shareholders as part of its previously announced five-year strategy.
“CIB’s ambition in supporting the launch of yomo is to make it easier for Egyptians everywhere to experience a fully digital banking experience,” Ezz Al-Arab said.
“Egypt’s banking industry is poised to benefit from the increased growth opportunities we are seeing across the mass consumer and small and micro business segments, and the yomo digital banking platform places CIB at the centre of that opportunity,” he added.
Digitally native, AI-enabled banking is reshaping financial services globally by reducing complexity, increasing accessibility and giving customers greater control over their financial lives.
Customers increasingly expect banking to be simple, intelligent and available wherever they are, with financial services designed around their lives rather than requiring them to adapt to traditional banking processes.
Built as a digitally native bank rather than a traditional bank delivered through a mobile application, yomo has been designed from the ground up within Egypt’s existing banking regulatory framework to meet the evolving expectations, lifestyles and ambitions of customers in Egypt.
Rashwan Hammady, newly appointed CEO of yomo, said securing the preliminary approval was a defining milestone, but only the beginning of the journey.
“We are building a bank that respects people’s time, speaks their language and helps them move forward with greater confidence and control,” Hammady said.
“Our ambition is to set a new benchmark for digital banking in Egypt by combining simple and intuitive experiences with intelligent support that helps customers make better financial decisions. We look forward to revealing much more about the yomo brand and the experience we are creating later this year,” he added.
Following the preliminary approval, yomo will continue the final stages of operational readiness, including technology validation, cybersecurity testing, regulatory compliance, customer journey optimisation and operational resilience, before launching its services.
The announcement marks the beginning of yomo’s ambition to help shape the future of banking in Egypt through innovation, trust and technology, while making banking more accessible, relevant and empowering for the next generation of customers.
