Circular on Precautionary Measures to Confront the Effects of Coronavirus

Dear Sir / Chairman of the Board of Directors,

Greetings,

In line with the state's direction regarding the novel Coronavirus virus and its commitment to ensuring the safety, security, and stability of the banking sector, as well as its role in supporting and assisting all sectors of the national economy, the Central Bank of Egypt has deemed it necessary for banks to take the required precautionary and preventive proactive measures to ensure business continuity and meet the needs of banking customers, as follows:

First: Ensuring Business Continuity and Emergency Plans for Banks, with procedures including at a minimum the following:

.1 Preventive Measures:

• Raising awareness among bank employees.
• Providing sanitizers and establishing a mechanism for continuous sterilization and disinfection, as well as fumigating banknote vaults.
• Enhancing the use of technology as an alternative to meetings (video calls or phone calls, etc.).
• Requiring employees to disclose their locations when traveling outside the country and taking mandatory leave immediately upon return.
• Expanding the use of electronic means for document exchange inside and outside the bank (scanners, email, for example).
• Providing devices and equipment for early detection of the virus.

.2 The bank's supervisory sector must be notified of the business continuity plan within a maximum of two working days, which must include the following:

• Identifying the management and responsible person for implementing the plan.
• Locations used for data recovery, information, systems, and alternative premises to conduct activities if normal operations are impossible.
• Plans for hedging measures to avoid the spread of infection, especially upon confirmation or suspicion that a bank employee has been infected.
• Availability of technological infrastructure ensuring the bank performs banking services.

Second: Facilitating Access to Banking Services:

• Banks must immediately make available the necessary credit lines to finance the import of basic and strategic goods, ensuring the fulfillment of requests by importing companies, particularly food goods to cover market needs.
• Making available the necessary credit lines for financing working capital, especially paying employee salaries.
• Studying and monitoring the most affected sectors and developing plans to support companies operating within them.
• Deferring credit maturities for small, medium, and micro-enterprises for 6 months, and not applying additional returns and late payment penalties.
• Developing urgent plans to increase credit lines with foreign banks to ensure the continued provision of necessary financing for foreign trade operations.

Third: Banking Operations:

• Continuing the operation of bank call centers to answer customer inquiries.
• Immediate refilling of ATMs, performing regular maintenance, and communicating with cash-in-transit companies to ensure business continuity.
• Retaining customer deposits to build large reserves of banknotes at their branch network and cash center.
• Working to replace large cash withdrawals with transfers or bank checks, exempting customers from associated bank commissions.
• Canceling fees and commissions applied to point-of-sale terminals, ATM withdrawals, and e-wallets for a period of 6 months.
• Increasing daily limits for debit and credit card transactions.
• Encouraging customers to execute banking transactions through electronic channels and cards instead of cash transactions.

The Central Bank of Egypt confirms its commitment to monitoring situations and developments at local and international levels to intervene immediately by taking any necessary measures to maintain monetary and banking stability.

In light of the above, it is imperative to alert immediately to full compliance with the aforementioned.

Accept our highest respect,

Tarek Amer