Egypt's Central Bank Names Winners of 2026 FinTech Got Talent

Egypt’s central bank has concluded the 2026 edition of its FinTech Got Talent competition, with three university teams selected to represent the country at the Arab FinTech Challenge in Jordan later this month.

The competition was organised under the FinYology initiative of FinTech Egypt, in partnership with the Federation of Egyptian Banks (FEB) and the Egyptian Banking Institute (EBI). It aims to identify and support innovative student projects focused on financial technology.

The three winning teams will compete at the Arab FinTech Challenge, held during the Jordan FinTech Festival 2026 from 21 to 24 September, alongside teams from Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Palestine.

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said the competition builds on its first three editions and forms part of efforts to develop young talent and strengthen Egypt’s position in the regional fintech sector.

CBE Governor Hassan Abdalla said developing young talent is central to the bank’s vision for Egypt’s banking and financial sector, adding that students need the skills to keep pace with changes in the global economy and improve the sector’s competitiveness.

CBE First Sub-Governor Ayman Hussein and EBI Executive Director Abdel Aziz Nossier inaugurated the competition at the CBE in the presence of banking officials and representatives from Egyptian universities.

Three projects take top places

The competition began with university-level qualifiers before 11 projects were selected for the final stage. The finalists then completed a month-long incubation programme at DMZ Cairo, receiving mentoring and support to develop their projects ahead of the final competition.

First place went to FinFamily, developed by students from Cairo University’s Faculty of Computers and Artificial Intelligence. The project is a digital platform aimed at improving financial literacy among children aged six to 15 through interactive financial education and AI-powered training in Arabic and English.

PayRamids, developed by students at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport’s Smart Village branch, took second place. The platform targets SMEs with tools for managing human resources and payroll, while also providing access to short-term financing from banks and licensed financial institutions.

Third place went to Pockety, developed by students from Nile University’s School of Business Administration. The project combines a mobile application with a smart bracelet that allows children to set savings goals, track spending, participate in financial challenges and make payments under parental supervision.

Egyptian teams head to Jordan

The three winning teams will now represent Egypt at the Arab FinTech Challenge, where Egyptian teams have performed strongly in previous editions. Egyptian teams have won the competition for the past three years. In 2025, they took both first and second place.

The CBE said the results demonstrate the ability of Egyptian university students to develop fintech and digital innovation projects that can compete at a regional level.

FinYology reaches 31 universities

FinTech Got Talent was launched in 2023 under the CBE’s FinYology initiative, which introduces university students to practical fintech applications while developing their technical and creative skills.

The initiative now covers 31 Egyptian universities, with nearly 24,000 students involved in developing 1,060 projects.

Around 27 banks and financial institutions have supported the programme over the past several years, providing backing for student projects and innovation.

The CBE said support from the banking sector is helping develop young talent, encourage innovation and entrepreneurship, and strengthen Egypt’s fintech ecosystem.