Egypt expects 2-3 IPOs in first year of privatisation plan

CAIRO, Capital Markets in Africa: Egypt expects to privatise two or three state-owned companies via listings on the stock exchange in the first year of a privatisation programme, the chief executive of government-owned NI Capital said on Monday.

The programme will last for three to five years and will start with state-owned oil companies but will also include state-owned banks, said Ashraf El-Ghazaly.

NI Capital is a government-owned, privately managed financial institution that is part the National Investment Bank. It acts as a consulting authority for the government and manages governmental investment funds.

The state owns vast swathes of the economy, including three of its largest banks along with much of its oil industry and huge parts of its real estate.

The economy has been struggling to recover since a popular uprising in 2011 drove foreign investors and tourists away. Years of political instability has hit growth in the Arab world’s most populous state and halved its currency reserves.

The last time state-owned companies were listed on the exchange was in 2005 when shares were floated in Telecom Egypt, the state’s landline monopoly, and oil companies Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals and AMOC.

Source: Reuters Africa News