Arab Finance: Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Mohamed Farid has attended the launch ceremony of the Startup Egypt event, which represents a significant leap towards building a more integrated institutional framework to back the growth of startups.

Farid pointed out that entrepreneurship highly contributes to driving global economic growth by offering job opportunities, stimulating innovation, and providing new solutions to economic and development challenges.

The ministry and the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) teamed up to develop the legislative and regulatory frameworks required to back startups and facilitate business procedures.

Both sides plan to diversify financing mechanisms, most notably convertible notes, to attract more investments in the digital economy, while leveraging the standards set by the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA).

In cooperation with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (TSFE), the ministry plans to establish a venture capital (VC) company to be listed on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX). This will encourage major financial institutions, such as insurance companies, pension funds, and banks, to increase their indirect investments in Egypt's startup ecosystem.

During a speech at Startup Egypt, Basel Rahmy, CEO of the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development Agency (MSMEDA), said the agency has supported more than 209 startups.