By: Amr Adel
Dubai – Mubasher: EFG Hermes Group is working on a number of offerings in the UAE and Egypt, which are likely to be disclosed in 2017, said the group's CEO Karim Awad.
The last offering for Hermes in the UAE was in 2015, where it was the manager of the subscription of Dubai Parks and Resorts on Dubai Financial Market (DFM).
Recent press reports showed that there will be an anticipated offering for the group on the shares of the Ilyas & Mustafa Galadari Group (IMG Group) and Al Shafar General Contracting Co.
Moreover, the last offer for the group on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX) was in May for the shares of Cleopatra Hospital, where Hermes was the international coordinator.
Responding to Mubasher’s question on the fears regarding Donald Trump’s victory in the US elections, the CEO stated that EFG focuses on long-term policies and investments. Development cannot be stopped by short-term changes, he added.
As for EFG’s geographical expansion, the CEO revealed that the group intends to enter two new markets outside the Arab region during 2017-2018. However, he did not name the two markets but mentioned that his company was interested in the markets in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The CEO noted that the group is still waiting for the official approvals for inaugurating its new office in the United States.
The group is looking forward to purchasing a 78% stake Invest & Finance Securities Limited listed on Pakistan’s Karachi bourse; however, this deal is still pending the necessary regulatory approvals, Awad told Mubasher.
The top executive pinpointed that the group seeks to add new products in the non-banking financial sectors during the coming period.
Hermes boosted its activity in the non-banking financial sector in February by acquiring 76.7% in Tanmeyah company for microfinance for EGP 345 million ($44.1 million).
The group's CEO commented on the issue of oil prices, saying that it varies from one country to another, but overall the decline in the price of crude led to applying governmental reform policies. He confirmed that the group's outlook is "optimistic" for 2017.
Commenting on the Central Bank of Egypt's (CBE) latest decision to float the EGP, Awad noted that even those decisions were tough, they were necessary and were thus welcomed by investors and especially foreign ones.
He added that the EGX stocks saw the highest demand from the foreign investors in two years after the devaluation decision, while daily trading increased from EGP 500 million to about EGP 1.2-1.8 billion.
EFG-Hermes assured that the increase in interest rate did not have an impact on the trading in the bourse, adding that the yield on the shares rose to 31%, which exceeds the banks' interest.
The group and Saxo Bank announced on Wednesday signing a strategic partnership agreement that will fully integrate the bank’s SaxoTraderGO platform with Hermes’ new online trading platform.
EFG-Hermes currently operates in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Jordon, Lebanon, Oman and Qatar.
Translated by: Sara Ghali
