# Meeza QR

> Source: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/meeza-qr
> research date 2026-05-29 · extracted at 2026-10-06
> Publisher: Barcoder — encyclopedia of QR, barcode and payment-code standards

Specifications:
- [Meeza Egypt — official](https://meeza-eg.com/)
- [Meeza Card — EBC](https://www.egyptianbanks.com/meeza-card/)
- [Meeza — Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meeza)

## Overview

**Meeza** is **Egypt's national card-payment scheme**, established by **Presidential Decree No. 89/2017** to support a cashless society in Egypt — operated by the **Egyptian Banks Company (EBC)** under **Central Bank of Egypt (CBE)** authority <sup>[1][1], [2][2], [3][3], [Egypt report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/EG)</sup>. Meeza launched formally in **2017** as Egypt's domestic-card-payment scheme — equivalent to Saudi Arabia's [Mada](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/mada), India's RuPay, Bangladesh's TakaPay, Russia's MIR, and Pakistan's PayPak. By **2023, over 17 million Meeza cards had been issued by 28 participating banks**, with current reporting suggesting **35+ million cardholders** in Egypt. **CBE planned 16,000+ quick payment service (QR code) acceptance points** during the rollout phase.

The structural significance: Meeza is the **Egyptian leg of the regional MENA national-card-scheme trend** — alongside [Mada](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/mada) SA, BENEFIT BH, KNET KW, UAE Switch. Meeza cards include prepaid + debit forms, accepted at Egyptian POS + ATMs + online merchants, with QR-code acceptance as a growing channel. Egypt's broader payment ecosystem ([Fawry QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawry-qr) platform, [InstaPay](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/instapay) consumer app on CBE's IPN rail) integrates with Meeza as the **domestic card layer** for non-Visa/Mastercard transactions. Meeza is also the structural counterpart to Egypt's broader **financial-inclusion drive** — supporting CBE's National Payment Council mission to reduce cash-outside-the-banking-sector and promote digital alternatives.

## History

**2017 — Presidential Decree No. 89/2017** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- Establishes **National Payments Council** to coordinate cashless-society efforts.
- Mandates EBC to develop + operate **Meeza** as the national payment-card scheme.

**Early Meeza rollout (2017-2019)** <sup>[2][2]</sup>:
- EBC develops the scheme infrastructure.
- Major Egyptian banks begin issuance.

**End of 2019 — 4 million cards** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- Initial scale-up phase.

**July 2020 — National Bank of Egypt 2M+ Meeza users** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- NBE alone reaches 2M Meeza customers.

**2023 — 17M+ cards by 28 banks** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- Substantial scale; majority of Egyptian banks participating.

**Current — 35M+ cardholders** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- Continued growth.

**QR-code acceptance** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- CBE plans 16,000+ QR-code acceptance points.
- Integration with [Fawry QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawry-qr) POS network (60K+ POS).

## Technical specification

Meeza is **Egypt's EBC-operated national card-payment scheme with QR acceptance** <sup>[1][1], [2][2], [3][3]</sup>:

| Layer | Description |
|---|---|
| **Operator** | **Egyptian Banks Company (EBC)** |
| **Regulator** | **Central Bank of Egypt (CBE)** + National Payments Council |
| **Establishment** | **Presidential Decree No. 89/2017** |
| **Card types** | Debit, prepaid |
| **Acceptance** | Egyptian POS + ATM + online + **QR-code** |
| **Currency** | EGP (Egyptian pound) |
| **Cards issued (2023)** | **17M+** by 28 banks |
| **Cards currently** | **35M+ cardholders** |
| **QR acceptance target** | 16,000+ points |

**Co-branding context** <sup>[Egypt report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/EG)</sup>:
- Most Egyptian banks issue **Visa/Mastercard cards** alongside Meeza.
- Meeza routes domestically; Visa/Mastercard route internationally — similar combo to [Dankort](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/dankort) DK or [Mada](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/mada) SA.

**Cashless ecosystem context** <sup>[Egypt report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/EG)</sup>:
- Meeza + [InstaPay](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/instapay) + [Fawry QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawry-qr) + CBE IPN form Egypt's coordinated digital-payment fabric.

## Use cases

**Domestic Egyptian card payments** <sup>[2][2]</sup>: POS + ATM + online.

**Government bill payment** <sup>[2][2]</sup>: Meeza accepted for government fees, utilities.

**Financial-inclusion target (unbanked Egyptians)** <sup>[3][3]</sup>: Prepaid Meeza cards extend digital-payment access to previously-unbanked.

**QR-code acceptance (growing)** <sup>[3][3]</sup>: 16,000+ targeted QR-code acceptance points.

**E-commerce** <sup>[2][2]</sup>: Meeza accepted for Egyptian online merchants.

**Salary cards (prepaid)** <sup>[2][2]</sup>: Many Egyptian employers issue prepaid Meeza cards to unbanked employees for salary payment.

## Implementations & ecosystem

**Operator**: **Egyptian Banks Company (EBC)**.

**Regulator**: **CBE** + National Payments Council.

**28 participating banks** including:
- **NBE** (National Bank of Egypt, largest issuer).
- **Banque Misr**.
- **CIB**.
- **QNB Alahli**.
- **HSBC Egypt**.

**Companion infrastructure**:
- **[InstaPay](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/instapay)** (consumer app on IPN).
- **[Fawry QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawry-qr)** (payment platform).
- **IPN** (CBE instant rail).

## Fun facts

- **Presidential Decree-mandated**: Meeza is unusual among national card schemes for being **explicitly mandated by presidential decree** (No. 89/2017) — most peer schemes are central-bank-coordinated voluntary initiatives.
- **Egypt's National Payments Council**: Established alongside Meeza to coordinate broader cashless-society push — institutional infrastructure beyond just the card scheme.
- **17M cards in 6 years, 35M+ now**: Substantial growth — comparable trajectory to [Mada](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/mada) SA, RuPay IN.
- **28 issuing banks**: Most major Egyptian banks participating.
- **Prepaid + debit + (likely) credit**: Tiered card types serving different segments.
- **Financial-inclusion centrepiece**: Many Meeza cards are **prepaid for unbanked Egyptians**, particularly salary-disbursement cards.
- **Integrates with [Fawry QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawry-qr) POS network**: 60K+ POS from Fawry + Meeza acceptance = comprehensive Egyptian domestic-card ecosystem.

## Comparison

| Feature | Meeza (EG) | [Mada](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/mada) (SA) | RuPay (IN) | TakaPay (BD) | [Dankort](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/dankort) (DK) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | EBC (CBE) | Saudi Payments (SAMA) | NPCI (RBI) | Bangladesh Bank | Nets (private) |
| Launch | 2017 (decree) / 2019 (scale) | 1990 (rebrand 2015) | 2012 | Jun 2024 | Sep 1983 |
| Cards in circulation | **35M+** | Universal | Major | Growing | ~5M |
| Co-branding | Visa/MC combo | Visa/MC combo | Visa/MC combo | Visa/MC combo | Visa/Dankort combo |
| Mandate origin | **Presidential Decree 89/2017** | Royal Decree | NPCI | CBE | Bank consortium agreement |

## Status

**Active, dominant Egyptian domestic card** <sup>[2][2], [3][3]</sup>:
- **EBC** operator, **CBE-supervised**.
- **35M+ cardholders**.
- **28 participating banks**.
- **QR acceptance** growing.
- **Companion to [InstaPay](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/instapay) + [Fawry QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/fawry-qr) + IPN**.

## Sources

[1]: https://meeza-eg.com/ "Meeza — official"
[2]: https://www.egyptianbanks.com/meeza-card/ "Meeza Card — EBC"
[3]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meeza "Meeza — Wikipedia"

- [1] [Meeza — official][1]
- [2] [Meeza Card — EBC][2]
- [3] [Meeza — Wikipedia][3]
- <sup>[Egypt report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/EG)</sup> `reports/countries/EG-egypt.md`

## Deployments

Found in the following country reports (grep across `reports/countries/`):

- **EG** — [EG-egypt.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/EG)