CFI Financial Group has appointed Amr Abdelbaky as chief executive officer of CFI Egypt, its locally regulated brokerage and bonds trading arm, as the Dubai-based firm sharpens its focus on one of the region's largest retail investor pools. Abdelbaky was promoted from within the group and will oversee an operation authorized by Egypt's Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA).
The Egyptian unit provides local clients with direct access to more than 200 stocks listed on the Egyptian Exchange, including Commercial International Bank, QNB ALAHLI, and Telecom Egypt. Unlike CFI's offshore subsidiaries, which operate a multi-asset contracts-for-difference (CFD) model across forex, indices, and commodities, the Egypt business is built around domestic equities under FRA rules.
CFI's Expansion in Egypt and the MENA Region
CFI first entered the Egyptian market at the end of 2022 through the acquisition of local broker El Mahrousa, a transaction the group previously described as a cornerstone of its MENA strategy. The appointment of Abdelbaky extends a period of organizational change and geographic expansion for the group, which opened a Bahrain office in October and reshuffled its senior leadership last year after Ziad Melhem moved into the group CEO role.
Commenting on the latest move, Melhem said in a statement that Egypt is an important market for the group, citing its solid fundamentals and growing investor participation. He added that the appointment is aimed at strengthening CFI's presence on the ground and maintaining close proximity to the market.
Competitive Landscape and Market Momentum
CFI's strategy in Egypt comes amid broader growth ambitions among brokers and trading venues across the Middle East and North Africa. Warsaw-listed XTB ran a free-share promotion across its MENA operation in October, while XS.com opened a Kuwait office last summer. OneRoyal established a Muscat entity in 2025 as part of what it termed a deeper Gulf push, and Exness along with crypto venue Bybit both secured regional licenses late last year.
Regulatory data also point to rising activity in the region. The Dubai Financial Services Authority reported that applications increased by 18% in the first nine months of 2025. Against this backdrop, CFI has reported strong operating metrics, with a record $1.51 trillion in second-quarter trading volume last year, up 18% from the previous quarter, and a 75% year-over-year increase in funded accounts in the first quarter of 2025.
The elevation of Abdelbaky to lead CFI Egypt aligns the group's governance and local presence with its broader regional expansion and positions the Egyptian unit to target growing domestic equity participation under the oversight of the FRA.
