• Home
• Fin tech

Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) has required licensed consumer finance companies to digitally verify customer data and review behavioral scoring based on alternative data through iScore, taking the results into account when deciding whether to approve or reject financing applications.

Behavioral Scoring Checks to Start in April 2027

The requirement was issued under FRA Chairman Dr. Islam Azzam’s Decision No. 2863 of 2026. It requires consumer finance companies to conduct Digital Verification of applicants’ data and obtain their Behavioral Scoring Based on Alternative Data from the credit information company iScore.

The new requirement supplements existing rules governing customer data verification and digital identity controls under FRA Board Decisions No. 140 of 2023 and No. 186 of 2024, including their amendments.

Companies will also continue to conduct credit inquiries covering customers’ dealings with other banking and non-banking financing providers, in line with Consumer Finance Law No. 18 of 2020 and the FRA’s relevant regulatory decisions.

Inquiries into customers’ behavioral scoring are scheduled to begin on April 1, 2027, once iScore’s dedicated system is ready.

Azzam: New Rules Will Strengthen Credit Decisions

Dr. Islam Azzam said digital verification of customer information and access to behavioral scoring would improve the assessment of borrowers’ creditworthiness, support sound financing decisions and reduce the likelihood of repayment defaults.

He said the decision followed a series of consultations with consumer finance companies and iScore, reflecting the FRA’s commitment to dialogue with industry participants. The consultations aim to support the sector’s stability while balancing growth and expansion against risks such as customer defaults and exposure to repayment difficulties that could negatively affect companies’ financial stability.

Azzam said the decision, together with previous measures requiring real-time connectivity between consumer finance and SME financing companies and iScore, as well as the accelerated implementation of customer identity verification using one-time passwords (OTP), forms part of the FRA’s ongoing effort to strengthen the regulatory framework for non-bank financing activities.

The measures are intended to improve operational efficiency, financing decisions, monitoring and supervision while keeping pace with market changes, technological developments and evolving risks.