The MoU aims to create cross-border instant payments interoperability between Egypt and other markets
Buna is progressing with its plans to be a strategic hub that links national instant payment solutions from the Arab region and beyond
Abu Dhabi, 27 October 2022: In a ceremony hosted by the Arab Monetary Fund, Mr. Tarek Raouf, Chief Executive Officer of Egyptian Banks Co. for Technological Advancement (EBC), a payment system operator owned by the Central Bank of Egypt, and a group of commercial banks, and Mr. Mehdi Manaa, CEO of Buna, the cross-border payment system operated by Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization “ARPCSO”, owned by The Arab Monetary Fund “AMF”, signed today a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) putting in place a framework of cooperation between Buna and EBC. The ceremony was held in the AMF headquarter in Abu Dhabi, UAE, under the patronage of H.E Dr. Abdulrahman A. Al Hamidy, Director General Chairman of the Board of the Arab Monetary Fund.
Under the terms of this MoU, Buna and EBC target to interlink their payment services, Buna and IPN, in order to achieve reachability across multiple instant payments services and provide innovative solutions that allow sending and receiving cross-border payments instantly, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year, in accordance with the highest international compliance standards.The strategic collaboration between Buna and EBC aims to streamline the flows of cross-border payments between Egypt and Arab world and support various use cases such as consumer remittances and digital commerce. The envisioned solution will spread the benefits of cross-border instant payments to citizens and corporates unlock opportunities for greater economic integration and strengthen economic ties within the Arab world.
At this occasion, Mehdi Manaa, Chief Executive Officer of Buna, said: “This MoU marks another milestone in Buna’s progress to create a strategic hub that interlinks national instant payment solutions and creates incremental value to a large community of participants for better serving their retail and corporate clients.” Mehdi added “We are happy to take this step with EBC and I thank them for sharing the objectives of enhancing cross-border payments and offering better experiences to the users. At this occasion, I would like to thank the Central Bank of Egypt for its continuous support to Buna, In Particular H.E. the Governor Hassan Abdalla”.
Mr. Tarek Raouf, Chief Executive Officer of EBC, commented “the strategic cooperation between Buna and EBC marks a new threshold for the realization of EBC’s vision at a regional level. For years, EBC has been modernizing national payment networks and schemes in compliance with international standards and has supported interoperability of payment services domestically. Raouf added “Joining Buna as a hub for regional payment comes in this special juncture to connect our payments infrastructure with the regional payments ecosystem, ushering in a great potential for delivering an unmatched instant and cross-border payment experience to users across the Arab world. We are witnessing today a new level of regional synergy within the payments ecosystem, unlocking tremendous opportunities for economic development and cooperation between Egypt and Arab nations”
Buna
Buna is the cross-border payment system operated by the Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization “ARPCSO”, which is owned by The Arab Monetary Fund “AMF”. Buna aims to enable financial institutions and central banks in the Arab region and beyond to send and receive payments in local currencies as well as key international currencies in a safe, cost-effective, risk-controlled, and transparent environment. Buna offers participants modern payment solutions that comply with international standards, principles, and compliance requirements. Thanks to its cross-border payment system Buna contributes to exploring and strengthening opportunities for economic and financial integration in the Arab region and supporting investment ties with the global trading partners. Buna welcomes the inclusion of all banks that meet the criteria and conditions for participation, primarily the standards and procedures of compliance aspects.
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EBC
Egyptian Banks Company for Technological Advancement “EBC” is the advanced payments network and operator of national payments schemes in Egypt, owned by the Central Bank of Egypt and National Banks. Serving as the technological arm of the Central Bank of Egypt, EBC fosters financial inclusion, modernization of governmental payments and supporting the transformation into a less-cash economy. EBC operates national payment infrastructure comprising the shared cash network “123”, Automatic Clearing House “ACH, Domestic Card Scheme “Meeza, Mobile Wallets network “Meeza Digital, the Instant Payment Network and the super App “InstaPay”. Our mission is to deliver seamless, instant, affordable and interoperable payment experience for individuals, businesses and the banking sector, in full compliance to international standards.
