Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority Grants Lumin Soft Preliminary Approval to Join FinTech Sandbox

Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) has granted Lumin Soft preliminary approval to join its FinTech Regulatory Sandbox, making it the third company to receive such approval since the sandbox was launched.

Lumin Soft specializes in developing digital identity, electronic verification, and digital contract solutions. The company submitted a project aimed at verifying the identity of non-Egyptian users through electronic passports (e-Passports) using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, enabling a fully digital identity verification process through mobile devices.

Dr. Islam Azzam, a senior official at the Financial Regulatory Authority, said the adoption of such digital mechanisms represents an important step toward facilitating the entry of foreign investors into the Egyptian market and enabling them to benefit from non-banking financial services.

He noted that simplifying investor identification procedures and verifying identities through secure digital systems would help boost foreign investment flows into Egypt.

Secure Passport Data Verification

The Lumin Soft project relies on reading and verifying electronic passport data in accordance with the Public Key Directory (PKD) standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), ensuring both data integrity and security.

Dr. Azzam added that adopting advanced technological solutions in financial services reflects Egypt’s broader strategy to position itself as a regional hub for financial technology. Supporting digital innovation and developing the technological infrastructure of the financial sector, he said, will enhance the competitiveness of the Egyptian market and attract more fintech companies.

He explained that the FRA’s regulatory sandbox is one of the authority’s key tools for supporting innovation in the financial sector, providing a supervised testing environment that allows companies to experiment with new business models and technological solutions before launching them in the market.

Within this regulatory environment, Lumin Soft will be able to conduct live testing of its business model, including the creation of digital identities using e-passports and integration with the Azimut Investments – Egypt platform, enabling investors to access financial products under regulatory supervision.

For his part, Ahmed Khalifa, Executive Director of the FRA’s Regulatory Sandbox, said the company’s project represents a practical example of leveraging digital transformation to develop financial services.

He added that the initiative could enable non-Egyptians to access investment services across different asset classes in the Egyptian market, while enhancing the efficiency and competitiveness of the non-banking financial sector.