Dar Al Ma'arif, Banque Misr sign agreement to settle EL1.8-bn indebtedness

CAIRO - 10 August 2017: Dar Al Ma'arif Foundation, one of the oldest publishing houses in the Arab world, and Banque Misr signed on Thursday an agreement to settle 1.8-billion-pound debts.

The deal, signed by the foundation chairman Saeed Abdo and the bank CEO Mohamed el Iterbi, comes as part of the foundation's efforts to improve its financial status.

The deal comes within the framework of the National Press Authority's initiative to face all problems facing press institutions.

Speaking to MENA, Abdo said the foundation has been in negotiations with the bank for more than one year to settle its debts that caused losses to the foundation estimated at 10 to 12 million pounds annually.

Under the deal, the foundation will pay the original amount of the debt worth 30 million pounds over five years without paying any interest.

Speaking about the foundation's efforts to return on track, he said it seeks to diversify resources of income by focusing on road advertisements and developing affiliated libraries across the nation.

He also unveiled the establishment of a 300-meter-sized screen to be installed along Kornich el Nile to serve State's development goals.