Banks maintain investment trends during H1-2024, Lending balances at the front

Banks operating in the Egyptian banking sector were able to perform strongly during this year, at the level of most of their financial indicators, and by monitoring the investment trends of banks during the first 6M of 2024, customer lending and debit balances remain the top priority of the banks' investment trends.

Turning to the details, we find that customer lending and debit balances has declined relatively to account for about 37.28% of the total assets of the banking sector (other than the Central Bank) by the end of June 2024, compared to a relative weight of 38.46% by the end of 2023.

Despite this decline, customer lending and debit balances jumped by 31.99% during the first half of this year, recording EGP 7.21 tn by the end of June, compared to EGP 5.46 tn by the end of last year. 

Banks have tended to reduce their investment trends in securities and treasury bills Having seen a marked decline in its relative weight, accounting for 27.04% of the total assets of banks operating in the Egyptian market by the end of the first half of 2024, compared to 36.50% by the end of 2023, the portfolio of securities and investment in treasury bills grew by 0.85% and an increase of EGP 44 bn, to move from EGP 5.18 tn by the end of last year, to EGP 5.23 tn by the end of June 2024.

As for banks in-house balances, it took third place as the largest component of the Egyptian banking sector asset portfolio, having weighed proportionately 17.58% of the sector's total assets by the end of the first 6 months of 2024, compared to 18.36% by the end of 2023.

While the relative weight of the other assets rose to 10.08% of total banking assets by the end of June 2024 compared to 3.58% by the end of last year, jumping by 283.61% and an increase of EGP 1.44 tn, after registering a value of about EGP 1.95 tn by the end of June 2024, compared to EGP 508 bn by the end of December 2023

The portfolio of assets of banks operating in the banking sector (other than the Central Bank) rose to 19.33 tn by the end of the first half of 2024, compared to EGP 14.2 tn by the end of 2023, with a growth of 36.16% and an increase of EGP 5.14 tn.

Banks' capital rose to EGP 451.81 bn by the end of June 2024, compared to EGP 410.9 bn by the end of 2023, to grow by 9.96%.

Reserves recorded about EGP 807.67 bn during the first 6 months of 2024, compared to EGP 476.47 bn by the end of last year, growing by 69.51%, and an increase of EGP 331 bn.