Egypt eyes cat bonds for economic protection and insurance market growth

A study undertaken by The Insurance Federation of Egypt has highlighted how the use of catastrophe bonds can help protect the country’s economy and society from natural catastrophe events, while also opening new opportunities for its insurance market.

We’ve reported in the past how Egypt has looked to implement an insurance-linked securities (ILS) framework across the country.

In 2022, the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) of Egypt put ILS in its strategic plan, showcasing how this could be an important new investment and risk transfer channel for the country.

Now, in 2025, the country appears to be eyeing up catastrophe bonds to help protect its economy and society, while also playing a crucial role towards helping its insurance and reinsurance market access international capital sources.

“Benefiting from the successful international experiences in the issuance and trading of catastrophe bonds becomes an urgent and necessary step to open new horizons for the Egyptian market, taking into account the technical, legislative and economic aspects,” the Insurance Federation of Egypt explained.

Adding: “In this context, the Union, through the Reinsurance Committee, in cooperation with the Financial Supervisory Authority, has prepared a comprehensive study on natural catastrophe bonds, which included its mechanisms of work and investment opportunities, and the added value it can achieve for the Egyptian insurance sector, while looking forward to the challenges that should be prepared to overcome.”

Tapping into the catastrophe bond market and making use of these financial instruments can become an important step for Egypt as the country continues its journey towards building a more robust and sustainable re/insurance market.

As well as this, cat bonds could help Egypt attract more capital to cover the financial impact of natural disasters, strengthen its capital markets, and provide local insurers and reinsurers with additional tools to manage extreme-event risk.

In related news, an expert panel recently recommended that India looks at developing its own insurance-linked securities (ILS) regulatory regime through its International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), which would include exploring the issuance of instruments such as catastrophe bonds.