Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo, which owns 80% of the Bank of Alexandria

Newsletter

21 Feb 2023

Italian bank Intesa Sanpaolo, which owns 80% of the Bank of Alexandria (Alexbank), is in advanced talks to acquire the remaining 20% stake in the bank owned by the government. It’s expected an official announcement about the acquisition soon. Alexbank wasn’t on the list of 32 companies the government is planning to sell stakes in over the next year, though the EGX said earlier this year that the bank was in the pipeline for a potential IPO on the EGX. Intesa bought 80% of Alexbank in a 2006 transaction as the institution was privatized. (EGX)

The Sovereign Fund of Egypt’s (SFE) health and pharma sub-fund is reportedly eyeing a minority stake in the pharma giant El Ezaby Pharmacy
in partnership with an unnamed local investment company. The expected acquisition value was not disclosed. The sovereign fund and B Investments last month agreed to together channel more than 2 billion EGP into local healthcare and pharma businesses. As part of the agreement, the investment firm is making an undisclosed investment in the SFE sub-fund, which aims to raise an initial 1.2 billion EGP of capital. The sub-fund aims to invest in local pharma players to help them expand into under-served cities around the country and improve their digital offering. (Al Mal)
Three consortiums of local and international contractors have submitted final bids in a tender for the 1.6 billion EUR project to convert Alexandria’s Abu Qir railway into an underground metro.
The three bidders beat out five others who were eliminated in a previous round of the tender. The European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development are investing a combined EUR 1 bn in the project, while the government will finance 15% of the cost. (Al Shorouk)
CBE offers two-type T-bonds worth 4.75 billion EGP on Monday.
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) auctioned treasury bonds (T-bonds) at an aggregated value of 3.25 billion EGP through two issues on Monday, 20 February. The first offering stood at 3 billion EGP and will mature in three years on 6 April 2026. Holding a seven-year tenor until 7 May 2029, the second tranche was valued at EGP 250 million. Meanwhile, the CBE issued zero-coupon T-bonds worth 1.50 billion EGP through one auction, carrying a maturity period of 1.5 years until 13 August 2024. (Mubasher)
The Egyptian private sector signs 7 investment memorandums of understanding with the Uzbek government.
The Uzbek Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade announced that he is currently meeting with representatives of major Egyptian companies operating in many sectors, including textiles and foodstuffs, to establish industrial partnerships between the two sides, as his country aims to be the gateway for the Egyptian business community to invest and export to Central Asian countries, and for Egypt to be the gateway to Uzbek investments. (Al Mal)
The Egyptian government sets solar plant licensing fees.
Solar plants producing up to 500 KW will have to pay 7,000 EGP to obtain a license, while licenses for facilities producing more than 500 KW will cost 35,000 EGP, according to a fresh set of regulations recently approved by the Egyptian Electric Utility & Consumer Protection Regulatory Agency (Egyptera). Projects generating less than 500 KW can also apply to Egyptera for an exemption from the licensing requirements. (Al Mal)
The bill’s primary objective is to “facilitate licensing small and medium-scale industrial projects to join the formal economy,
while giving them a chance to operate legally for a temporary period,” Senate Industrial Committee head Mohamed Halawa said. The amendments could “open the door for hundreds of thousands of unlicensed industrial projects to go legitimate at the end of the period,” as long as they get their ducks in a row and meet licensing standards, Halawa added. It’s difficult to get an accurate or specific number on the exact number of unlicensed industrial projects that are currently operating across the country, “but we estimate that there are hundreds of thousands,” Halawa said. (Al Mal)
The shareholders of state-owned Heliopolis Housing approved the company’s decision to scrap plans to co-develop its Heliopark project in New Cairo with Mountain View.
The company’s board chose Mountain View a year ago in a tender to find a partner to co-develop Heliopark, only to call the agreement off in January, citing the current economic conditions and rising land valuations. The parent company of Heliopolis Housing is reportedly in talks with Gulf investors who are interested in investing in Heliopark. (Al Mal)
Almarai subsidiary acquires PepsiCo’s 48% stake in International Dairy and Juice.
Almarai Co.’s subsidiary, Almarai Investment Holding Co., completed on Feb. 17 the purchase of PepsiCo’s 48% ownership in International Dairy and Juice Ltd (IDJ). The 255 million SAR deal raises Almarai’s shareholding in IDJ to 100% from 52%. The purchase amount was funded from Almarai’s internal cash flows, the statement added, indicating that the full ownership of IDJ will allow it to further expand strategically in the wider region. (Zawya)
Finally, not to miss the big story abroad, Facebook parent Meta is preparing to launch a monthly subscription service aimed at content creators called Meta Verified
that will introduce additional features and new services. For USD 11.99 a month. Facebook will give you “proactive account protection, access to account support, and increased visibility and reach,” a company spokesperson said. Meta Verified is set to be tested in Australia and New Zealand this week, with other countries to follow later. (Bloomberg)