National Bank of Egypt (NBE) granted EGP1.65bn to 2,663 small and very small enterprises from January to April 2016, according to the bank’s deputy chairperson, Mahmoud Montasser. Financing these projects comes in line with the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE)’s initiative to support SMEs financing. Montasser said that 73% of these projects obtained loans to expand their existing activities, while 27% of them were newly established. The bank was able to attract 1,910 new customers, which accounts for 72% of the total 2,663 customers. (The Daily News Egypt)