CI Capital, a holding company for financial investments, is studying a new investment opportunity in the non-banking financial activities sector.
Mahmoud Atallah, Chairperson of CI Capital, said that the opportunity could be through establishment of a new entity or acquisition.
CI Capital launched this week the seventh edition of the annual MENA Investor Conference. On the sidelines of the conference, Atallah indicated that the merger plan between “CI Capital” and “Misr Capital” has been completed, and the latter represents a promising opportunity and supports the business model.
He added that most of the legal procedures have already been completed by Banque Misr, and the final details of the merger are being finalized.
He also stated that the conference witnessed a great turnout by investors, and a change in the exchange rate is possible in all countries that foreign investors plan to enter. There is no guarantee that it will not change, and the foreign investor prepares sufficient detailed studies before entering the target market.
He added that the problem of the Egyptian economy is on its way to a solution, with the need to control the inflation file during the coming period.
Hisham Gohar, CEO of CI Capital, said that the recovery of the region’s markets and the bold economic reforms adopted by Egypt enhance promising investment opportunities in many different sectors, whether in Egypt or the countries of the Middle East and North Africa.
Amr Helal, CEO of sell-side investment, CI Capital, said that the conference witnessed the participation of 45 Egyptian companies and 35 companies from the Gulf Cooperation Council representing important sectors such as health care, consumer, finance, banking services, industrial, communications, utilities, and real estate sectors, in direct meetings with 300 international investors representing 120 institutions with total assets under management of more than $2.5trn.
Helal added that the strong return to the conference is in line with the company’s ambition to expand geographically in the Middle East, and enhance CI Capital’s position in the Egyptian market. The company seeks to play a greater role in the region’s financial markets.
Helal believes that the second half of this year will witness new offerings from the private sector after the market has stabilized.
He added that the priorities in the government offering program witnessed a change in the order of the companies to be offered, especially that the government is serious about implementing the program, and the investors’ appetite is linked to good opportunities, especially if there is an investment opportunity with a fair evaluation.
Shahir Hosny, CEO and Managing Director of CI Capital Brokerage Company, stated that the Egyptian market has witnessed exceptional performance since November 2022 with the continuation of the upward trend of the Egyptian Stock Exchange, which drew the attention of foreign investors to the market and enhanced the participation of local investors as well, whether institutions or individuals.
He added that the reform measures adopted by the Egyptian government enhance the stability of economic indicators, increase foreign currency reserves, enhance sustainability and support the private sector, which had a prominent role in returning the Egyptian market to the map of investment institutions around the world.
Hosny added that the GCC markets benefited from the rise in fuel prices after the repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian war, and were able to enhance their investment potential by increasing local investments and launching major projects, which put the Gulf markets at the forefront of the most attractive markets around the world since the Corona pandemic.
Monsef Morsy, co-head of the research department at the investment bank CI Capital, believes that this year would be better with the changes witnessed in the first month, starting with the liberalization of the local currency and announcing a timetable for government offerings.
He added that implementing plans to encourage the private sector was the most important point demanded by investors at the company’s annual conference, something the government has already begun to implement.
He explained that he is optimistic about the improvement of macroeconomic indicators, locally, but pointed out that the negative developments in the world will have an impact on Egypt as well, as happened in the previous two years.
He explained that the decline in inflation rates in the United States is positive for all emerging markets, including Egypt, due to the calm rates of raising interest rates.
