From vegetables to dental treatment to phones, more and more Egyptians are resorting to deferred payment methods to meet their needs in a time of record inflation.
Buy now, pay later – or BNPL – has been on the rise in Egypt since last year, when the value of the Egyptian pound dropped by more than half after a series of devaluations. The sector is expected to grow by 52.3 per cent this year, according to a Research and Markets report.
But the trend is not limited to FinTech companies and purchases of big-ticket items by the more affluent classes.
Khaled Alaa, a vegetable seller in Al Asher, a lower-income neighbourhood of the east Cairo district of Nasr City, has begun offering his own BNPL scheme.
Mr Alaa said residents of the area can pay for their fruits and vegetables over the course of a week, but he is selective about which customers he allows to do this.
“Most of my customers are women who live in or around the area. So I know where they live and if they don’t come and pay their debts, there is a direct way for me to reach them. So those are mostly the people I accept,” he tells The National.
Food prices helped to drive Egypt’s headline inflation to another record in August, up to 37.4 per cent from 36.5 per cent the previous month.
With the cost of essentials rising, people have been deferring or reducing spending in other areas.
Mohamed Hamed, a dentist in Greater Cairo’s Giza district, said he began to offer patients deferred payments in March after noticing a months-long decline in visits and a growing reluctance to undergo more expensive procedures.
“Towards the end of last year, I began receiving patients who needed fillings or root canals but they couldn’t afford them,” Dr Hamed said.
“When they would hear the high prices, they would just ask me to remove the whole tooth and get it over with, which is a cheaper procedure."
A filling that cost 200 pounds last year now costs more than 700, he said.
“I decided to first allow customers I knew well or who lived in my area to break up their payments into instalments. I wasn’t sure how safe it was to do the same for people I don’t trust. But a few months ago, I began to ask for a copy of patients’ national IDs and for them to sign a proof of debt.”
The new business model “has worked well for now, as more patients have begun to return”, he said.
Over the past year, FinTech companies such as ValU and Sympl have also increased their operations significantly to meet the demands of wealthier Egyptians, whose purchasing power has also been diminished by record inflation.
ValU, owned by EFG Hermes, partners with local businesses to offer zero-interest payment plans on a wide range of products and services.
While the company had long provided payment plans for items such as clothes and beauty products, over the past year, its offerings have expanded to include tuition fees for some of Cairo’s more expensive universities, pharmacy bills and doctors’ fees.
“A large part of the rise in the popularity of companies like ValU is the inflation level, that part is undeniable,” said Ali Al Idreesy, a financial analyst.
“A rise in inflation diminishes purchasing power which in turn could severely damage the economy of a country like Egypt, because it is a mostly consumptive country that doesn’t produce as much so purchasing is how it all keeps going and we are seeing this being facilitated on a lot of levels.
“People are now not able to afford even necessities and if there is an option they can use to do that, they will use it, it only makes sense.”
The country’s largest financial institutions, including the Central Bank of Egypt, have moved to open more BNPL options. The central bank has adjusted the requirements for credit card applicants to allow them to borrow a larger percentage of their income than before.
Mr Al Idreesy said this to give more people more spending ability and keep the economy moving.
Noran Momen, a filmmaker from an affluent background and a user of BNPL services, said deferred payments “have been a lifesaver”.
While such schemes have allowed the poor to afford necessities, they also allow wealthy Egyptians “to remain inside their desired social class”, she told The National.
“Something like an iPhone, for instance, has become so expensive that very few people I know can buy it for cash upfront. However, accepting a reality where you now can’t afford an iPhone after being able to for years makes people panic that the prices are pushing them out of their upper social class,” she added.
“So you use these services and continue being a part of your socioeconomic group.”
The rise in BNPL services in Egypt is also due to increasing financial awareness among Egyptians, Mr Al Idreesy said.
Thanks to the rise in social media use and advertising campaigns by FinTech companies, people are now more aware of the financing options open to them.
“These mechanisms have gone so far beyond covering necessities. They are now creating markets themselves by promoting the ease of their purchasing mechanisms,” he said.
“I think one of its most positive aspects is that it’s making Egyptians more financially savvy.”
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Masters%20of%20the%20Air
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Section 375
Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat
Director: Ajay Bahl
Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL
Rating: 3.5/5
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Uefa Champions League play-off
First leg: Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Ajax v Dynamo Kiev
Second leg: Tuesday, August 28, 11pm (UAE)
Dynamo Kiev v Ajax
MATCH INFO
Everton 2 Southampton 1
Everton: Walcott (15'), Richarlison (31' )
Southampton: Ings (54')
Man of the match: Theo Walcott (Everton)
The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK
Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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French Touch
Carla Bruni
(Verve)
if you go
The flights
The closest international airport to the TMB trail is Geneva (just over an hour’s drive from the French ski town of Chamonix where most people start and end the walk). Direct flights from the UAE to Geneva are available with Etihad and Emirates from about Dh2,790 including taxes.
The trek
The Tour du Mont Blanc takes about 10 to 14 days to complete if walked in its entirety, but by using the services of a tour operator such as Raw Travel, a shorter “highlights” version allows you to complete the best of the route in a week, from Dh6,750 per person. The trails are blocked by snow from about late October to early May. Most people walk in July and August, but be warned that trails are often uncomfortably busy at this time and it can be very hot. The prime months are June and September.
NINE WINLESS GAMES
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Oct 30, EFL)
Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)
Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal (Nov 6, Europa)
Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)
Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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A Prayer Before Dawn
Director: Jean-Stephane Sauvaire
Starring: Joe Cole, Somluck Kamsing, Panya Yimmumphai
Three stars
Read more about the coronavirus
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4.0-litre%2C%20flat%20six-cylinder%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eseven-speed%20PDK%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E510hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E470Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efrom%20Dh634%2C200%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Continental champions
Best Asian Player: Massaki Todokoro (Japan)
Best European Player: Adam Wardzinski (Poland)
Best North & Central American Player: DJ Jackson (United States)
Best African Player: Walter Dos Santos (Angola)
Best Oceanian Player: Lee Ting (Australia)
Best South American Player: Gabriel De Sousa (Brazil)
Best Asian Federation: Saudi Jiu-Jitsu Federation
TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The bio
Job: Coder, website designer and chief executive, Trinet solutions
School: Year 8 pupil at Elite English School in Abu Hail, Deira
Role Models: Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk
Dream City: San Francisco
Hometown: Dubai
City of birth: Thiruvilla, Kerala
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3EHigh%20fever%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EIntense%20pain%20behind%20your%20eyes%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ESevere%20headache%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EMuscle%20and%20joint%20pains%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ENausea%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3EVomiting%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ESwollen%20glands%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3ERash%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIf%20symptoms%20occur%2C%20they%20usually%20last%20for%20two-seven%20days%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
