Egypt postpones 2nd phase of gov’t IPOs to Jan. 2020

CAIRO – 1 September 2019: Any initial public offering within the second phase of the government offering program has been postponed until January 2020, after it was scheduled for September, Minister of Public Business Sector Hisham Tawfik told Enterprise.

"Some measures have taken more time and we will not be able to float companies for the first time until the end of the fourth quarter of this year," he said.

The second phase includes 10 companies, containing eight mining and industrial companies, in addition to e-finance and Banque du Caire.

Moreover, the minister said that it is expected to offer additional shares in three companies before the end of this year by one company per month or according to market conditions and the views of investment banks.

He added that the decision will be made after knowing the vision of the investment bank responsible for the offering of each company to determine the rate of offering of institutions, individuals, or public offering in accordance with market liquidity and capital market conditions.

Tawfik pointed out that the IPO committee has completed the initial procedures for offering Alexandria Containers and Cargo Handling Co, Abu Qir Fertilizers and Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals.

Local press said in July that the government planned to offer an additional 20 percent of Alexandria Containers’ shares at a price of LE 15.6 per share, while other press reports said an additional 23 percent stake in Sidi Kerir Petrochemical Company would be offered.

By the end of February, Egypt floated a stake of Eastern Company on EGX, and the public and private offerings on the course were completed Wednesday, March 6, with a total value of LE 1.72 billion.

In 2018, Egypt delayed listing shares of state-owned companies on the Egyptian Exchange, such as the 4.5 percent stake of Eastern Company slated for October. The government attributed the delay to volatility in the global market, noting that if the shares had been floated, they would have failed to be covered at proper valuation.

In 2016, Egypt announced the launch of the government’s IPO program offering shares over three to five years in several state-owned companies in fields such as petroleum, services, chemicals and real estate.

As part of the economic reform program, the government targets offering 15-30 percent of stakes in state-owned companies on the stock exchange (EGX) to increase funding to Egyptian companies, maximize the benefit from state assets, and attract local and foreign capital flows to Egypt.