Egypt considers evaluating country's assets in dollars or pounds on case-by-case basis

CAIRO - 1 March 2023: Egypt intends to agree with investors regarding the asset sale program on a case-by-case basis whether it will be denominated in US dollars or pounds, Planning Minister Hala El-Said told Bloomberg.

 

The choice of currency in evaluating the shares to be sold is considered an obstacle in Egypt's attempt to secure foreign currencies to support the economy, which was harmed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

 

Bloomberg reported last week that talks with Saudi Arabia about buying United Bank of Cairo had stalled over a valuation row.

 

Minister of Planning and head of Egypt's sovereign wealth fund, Hala El-Said, said that there would be an agreement "first between us as the government and the investor" on the currency for each deal.

 

Said was part of a delegation visiting Qatar as part of a campaign to get some money from investments made by Qatar and its energy-rich neighbors in 2022.

 

Moreover, the minister said that Egypt and Qatar plan to establish a joint investment fund and are in talks about its size and the economic sectors it will focus on. The two countries also signed an agreement to eliminate double taxation on income and memorandums of understanding in the health and housing sectors.