Egypt and Qatar have agreed upon a number of investments worth a total of 5 billion USD to be pumped into the North African country over the coming period

Newsletter

30 Mar 2022

For our top talks today, first, Egypt and Qatar have agreed upon a number of investments worth a total of 5 billion USD to be pumped into the North African country over the coming period. Within the framework of strengthening economic cooperation between Egypt and Qatar, both parties called for the importance of forming a joint higher committee headed by the two countries’ foreign affairs ministers to constantly discuss mutual collaboration across all sectors. The agreements will increase the dollar proceeds for Egypt after foreigners exit debt instruments due to the Russian war. With the flow of dollars from the Gulf, whether Qatar or the UAE, we may see the Egyptian pound at stronger levels against the dollar during the next two months, it may It rises until it reaches 17.5 per dollar against the Egyptian pound. (Arab Finance)

Second, France is set to supply Egypt’s demand for wheat over the coming months amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine which represents a risk for grain importing countries.
In a separate statement, Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli said that the North African country was counting on France to ensure basic commodities supplies. Egypt highly depends on wheat shipments from Ukraine and Russia and is seeking alternative supplies from other countries such as France and India. It is worth noting that a shipment of 30,000 tons of wheat from France is on its way to Egypt as part of a “rare French sale” to the Egyptian private sector. It was recently reported that Egypt was in final talks with India regarding receiving wheat supplies. (Reuters)
Egyptian startups attracted 491 million USD investments in 2021, an all-time high record, registering a 168% year-on-year (YoY) surge, according to Magnitt’s 2021 Egypt Venture Investment Report.
Egypt topped the continent of Africa in terms of the number of deals closed in 2021, occupying the third place in terms of total funding. As for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Egypt ranked second among top active markets in terms of venture capital (VC) deals in 2021, making up 24% of all deals closed in the region. (Arab Finance)
Egyptian startups saw a surge in investors from outside MENA.
The North African country attracted highest number of foreign investors in the region, followed by the UAE and KSA. Fintech accounted for 17% of total VC deals closed in Egypt in 2021 and 18% of total transactions in MENA. Egyptian transport and logistics industry attracted 36% of investments last year, driven by 120 million USD funding secured by Egypt’s fintech startup MNT-Halan. (Arab Finance)
And for our EGX and companies talks, Eksab, a Cairo-based daily fantasy football platform, has raised a sum of 3 million USD in a seed funding round.
The new round has been led by 4DX Ventures, along with the participation of Darwazah Capital, Golden Palm Investments, P1 Ventures, and some strategic angel investors from the local and global sports and entertainment ecosystem. To date, this funding round brings Eksab’s total investments to 3.7 million USD. The company plans to use the fund in building on its user base across the MENA region and Africa, investing in product development and talent acquisition for engineering, and entering partnerships with a number of leading global football clubs. (Arab Finance)
Altibbi, the largest AI-based digital health platform in the MENA region, has raised 44 million USD in Series B funding round.
This marks the biggest single financing round for a digital health company in the region. The new round was led by Found Holdings and Hikma Ventures, along with existing investors global Ventures and DASH Ventures. The company will use the new fund to expand through building on online pharmacy and diagnostic collection and setting up the first end-to-end fully integrated primary care offering in the MENA region. This move aims at providing “high quality, affordable, accessible value-based healthcare” as per the Saudi Vision 2030 and the directions of the Egyptian Ministry of Health.
Rabbit, an Egypt-based on-demand delivery company, has obtained its licence from the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Investment to operate in the Saudi market.
The startup is expected to invest more than 60 million USD over the coming 24 months to provide its services in the kingdom and to offer over 700 jobs in the process. The license has been awarded by the Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih in a ceremony held in Riyadh on March 28th at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress 2022. This announcement has been made only six months after Rabbit secured an 11 million USD pre-seed round and launched its business in Cairo. (Arab Finance)
Arab Moltaka Investments Company (AMIC) has signed an 60 million EGP financing agreement with Al Tawfeek Leasing Company (A.T.LEASE) (ATLC).
It is worth mentioning that Arab Moltaka owns 68.4% of Al Tawfeek Leasing’s shares. AMIC invests in a diversified range of economic sectors covering a broad spectrum including industrial and agricultural investments, land reclamation and cultivation, livestock development, fisheries, real estate investments, and tourism. (EGX)
Al Baraka Bank Egypt (SAUD) has contributed 750 million EGP to the coverage of the issuance of 3.251 billion EGP sharia-compliant sukuk by Palm Hills Development Company (PHDC), according to the bank’s CEO Hazem Hegazy.
The sukuk issuance was also covered by Arab Investment Bank and Suez Canal Bank (SCB). On March 27th, Sarwa Capital, a subsidiary of Contact Financial Holding, announced the issuance of 3.251 billion EGP sharia-compliant sukuk for Palm Hills. The issuance will finance Palm Hills’ Badya project in the 6th of October City. Badya is an integrated residential complex including different units with various spaces, comprising apartments and villas. The sukuk issuance was organized and promoted by Sarwa Capital, while Misr Capital promoted and guaranteed the coverage of the issuance. (Al Mal)
The Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) has approved the disclosure of Marseilia Almasreia Alkhalegeya for Holding Investment (MAAL) in relation to the initiation of procedures for increasing authorized capital.
The company’s authorized capital will be increased by 140 million EGP to 500 million EGP from 360 million EGP. It is worth noting that Marseilia’s consolidated net profit after tax amounted to 26.23 million EGP in the full-year ended December 31st 2021, compared to a profit of 19.27 million EGP in 2020. (EGX)