LEGISLATION WATCH- The Banking and Central Bank Act is now the law of the land after President Abdel Fattah El Sisi ratified legislation that gives the Central Bank of Egypt more regulatory oversight of the sector, including e-payment, fintech and cryptocurrencies, according to the Official Gazette (pdf). The long-awaited legislation, which has been in the pipeline since 2017, was approved by the House of Representatives in July. Banks now have 1-3 years to comply with the law.

Need a refresher on the law’s key provisions? We have the rundown on the entire process since legislators began drafting the law three years’ ago: a 1% industry-wide tithe on profits for a bailout fund; new capital requirements and the exemption of SME lenders and digital banks from them; bank bailouts and licenses for credit risk guarantee companies; the scrapping of a controversial article that would have introduced term limits on managing directors at private-sector banks; and a whole list of new provisions here.