There was no truth to recent reports that Egypt was suspending its Initial Public Offering (IPO) programme, Egyptian Public Business Sector Minister Hisham Tawfik said in exclusive statements to Ahram Online.
The programme has been postponed so that some legal conditions can be met, Tawfik confirmed.
Tawfik added that the public business sector ministry and the committee established to run the programme have not yet set a specific time to start the second wave of the IPOs, and that a timeframe will be announced after the required legal procedures are completed.
“Investments banks that are responsible for offering the listed companies have finalised their work, and the offering date will be announced soon,” he said.
The IPO programme has listed 23 public sector companies to be offered on the Egyptian stock exchange (EGX).
The Ministry of Finance has announced the IPO programme will be implemented over two phases. The first was successfully launched in March 2019 by offering an additional stake of Eastern Tobacco Company at 4.5 percent of its shares.
The first wave of offerings has not yet been completed, and is supposed to witness offerings for the companies Abu Qir Fertilisers, Alexandria Container and Cargo Handling (ACCH), and Heliopolis Company for Housing and Development (HHD).
The Alexandria Mineral Oils Company (AMOC) was listed to be offered, but the government announced that it will be delayed due to its significant loses in the EGX.
As Egypt’s Minister of Finance Mohamed Maait announced in April, the IPO would add about EGP 450 billion to the EGX’s market capitalisation.
Meanwhile, head of E-Finance company Ibrahim Sarhan told Ahram Online in September that the company will be among those chosen to be offered on the EGX before the end of 2019.
Chairman of Prime Group and a Banque du Caire board member Tamer Wagih told Ahram Online in September that Banque du Caire will be among the listed companies to be offered in 2019 as well, which are signs that the IPO programme will be resumed before the end of 2019.
Source: Ahram Online
