Egypt set to float stakes in 23 state companies

Egypt announced Sunday the names of 23 state companies it will offer stakes in beginning this year, part of a plan to raise about 80 billion Egyptian pounds ($4.6 billion) through minority share offerings on the Cairo bourse. They included Banque Du Caire, one of the country’s largest banks, major oil companies Middle East Oil Refining (MIDOR) and Engineering for Petroleum and Process Industries (ENPPI), as well as Misr Insurance Company.

The government had said that it intended to sell shares in dozens of state companies to boost public finances and draw more investors to the Cairo exchange, but had previously only identified a handful of companies as candidates.

The 23 companies range from banking and petroleum to real estate and will look to sell stakes ranging from 15-30 percent in the next two to 2 1/2 years, the Finance Ministry said in a statement. The list includes companies already traded on the exchange and others that will hold an initial public offering.