Sharm deals failing to materialize? Budget now with El-Sisi. US, Egypt to hold strategic dialogue. Qalaa inks deal to shed non-core holdings. NBE appoints lead arrangers for USD bond. Fox Chips goes off air. Parties not playing ball on electoral list.

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TODAY
(The Ramadan Edition)

The dreaded Ramadan news slowdown has arrived, one day earlier than our (strictly not halal) betting pool suggested. Have heart, though: We resisted the temptation to pad-out this morning’s edition with Ramadaniyat.

How slow is it, exactly? Well, the domestic business press has devolved into quoting (nearly-verbatim) the minutiae of the Official Gazette, alongside pieces about Chinese metals prices and banking-industry meetings in Beirut… More below.

Maghreb will be at 7:00pm today, while fajr will be at 3:09am.

Depending on whose report you believe, today could be the longest fasting day of Ramadan at 15 hours and 52 minutes, according to Ahram Online, citing the National Research Institute for Astronomy and Geophysics (NRIAG). Al-Shorouk had previously pegged Sunday as the longest day, citing the National Meteorological Authority.

Also: Ramadan will last 29 days this year, the NRIAG says. By our math, that would make Thursday, 16 July the last day of the holy month.

LAST NIGHT’S TALK SHOWS

Amr Adeeb and Khaled Abu Bakr are tired of politics — and so devoted their program last night to everyone’s favorite Ramadan topic: television.

Both are huge fans of actress Nelly Karim, who plays the role of Mariam, a drug addict in one of the more popular television series this year, Ta7t El Saytara (Under the Influence). “The problem of drug addiction is not new to Egyptian cinema and television, but it has never been dealt with as professionally and realistically as it is in this series. In her third strong Ramadan performance [following Zaat in 2013 and Segn El Nessa last year, all three written by Mariam Naoum] Nelly Karim has firmly established herself as one of the best Egyptian actresses. The series is really well done and sends a strong message about the dangers of drug use,” said Adeeb.

Their studio guests were cinema and TV critics Tarek El Shinnawy and Ola El Shafie, who continued with a detailed discussion of the drama this Ramadan.

Everyone agreed that the most difficult-to-understand series on television this year is El Ahd (The Pact). “As I understand it, the story is about a fictional rural village and it takes place during an unknown age. The events are symbolic of what has happened in Egypt during the past few years,” said El Shinnawy. “Thus far it is not clear what exactly El Ahd is; you can interpret it in many different ways, but that is the beauty of it, there is no doubt that this is a very captivating series.”

El Shafie thinks that the surprise performance of the year is Haifa Wahby in the series Mariam. It’s Ramadan, so we will refrain from comment.

Adeeb and Abu Bakr also talked about their favorite television ads. They like Al Arousa tea, Etisalat and Vodafone. Adeeb noted that singer Amr Diab appears in three ads in one month. “He doesn’t need to worry about making music, I think he’s set for the year. The Porto October ad alone is enough to set him up for the year,” said Adeeb. “I wonder why no one is asking me to appear in an ad? I’m not even being offered a voice over.”

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SPEED ROUND

The final draft of the FY2015-16 budget went to President Abdel Fattah El Sisi yesterday for his approval before it is enacted by presidential decree, a senior official at the Finance Ministry said. A government source denied to Al Masry Al Youm that El Sisi is set to reject the budget proposal as he did last year’s, saying it does not contain controversial reform measures similar to those proposed last year.

Sharm deals failing to materialize, says leaked gov’t report? The Mahlab government has failed to translate MoUs signed at the Egypt Economic Development Conference in Sharm El-Sheikh earlier this year into finalized agreements, El Watan says. The newspaper is citing a “classified report” sent to Ittihadiya on 15 June, just after the end of the 90-day period given to the government to finalize deals reached in Sharm. The report says only 11% of the MoUs were translated into deals. The Housing Ministry is the top performing ministry, the report says, as it managed to finalize 42% of its MoUs.

Egypt to hold strategic dialogue with U.S. from 28-29 July -Foreign ministry spokesperson:Ambassador Badr Abdelaty, the MFA’s outgoing spokesperson, was quoted on Tuesday as saying that the dialogue will be held at the end of July, as reported by Reuters, and will see U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Egypt. DNE notes that Abdelaty said the date for talks was agreed following a call from US Secretary of State John Kerry to Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry on Monday, picking up where a tentative agreement made in 2013 left off. Reuters notes that the last such dialogue was held in 2009.

Qalaa Holdings in deal with FHI to sell non-core holdings; will shed debt of c. EGP 800 mn.Qalaa Holdings has signed agreements with Financial Holdings International (FHI), a long-time co-investor, to sell FHI its stakes in home furnishings mall Designopolis, small-cap investment fund Grandview and Dina Farms Land Companies. Under the terms of what amounts to an asset swap, Qalaa will acquire FHI’s stakes in cement and construction group ASEC Holding, energy distributors TAQA Arabia and Mashreq, river transport outfit Nile Logistics, Dina Farms Supermarkets, and United Foundries. The transaction will result in an EGP 800 mn net reduction in Qalaa’s consolidated debt. Reuters has the story, and the full statement is here.

The Nanny State, Egypt-Style. The Consumer Protection Agency has demanded the Fox Chips Ramadan TV advertisement be taken off air, saying it “instills incorrect parenting practices” and incites “violence.” CPA chief Atef Yaqoub says the avert violated a 2005 standard, according to Ahram Online. Yaqoub said the agency has received a number of complaints and claims the CPA forced the ad off the airwaves. It’s not clear whether the CPA has the legal authority to ban an advertisement on the grounds cited; sources in the advertising community tell us the spot was pulled voluntarily and might be re-tooled. By majority (but not unanimous) vote, we here at Enterprise declare it was one of the funniest ads on screens this Ramadan. If we’ve learned anything from history, it’s that nothing makes something more appealing than it being banned… Watch it here.

Yesterday, it was two Fast Missile Craft from the United States. Today, it’s the Normandie, a 6,000 ton Frégate Européenne Multi-Missions (FREMM)-class frigate from France, which raised the Egyptian national colors in a ceremony held in the French port of Lorient attended by Defense Minister Sedky Sobhi and his French counterpart, reports Ahram Gate. Janes, the storied naval and maritime news service, first reported on the EUR 1 bn deal back in February, noting that the Normandie was to have been the second FREMM to enter French service. Janes said at the time that shipbuilder “DCNS will train the Egyptian crew on board Normandie in Lorient over the next four months. Once this training and further outfitting work is complete, the ship is scheduled to sail for Egypt in July, where DCI and French Navy instructors will carry out further training. The DCNS statement said that training and logistics support for the vessel will continue in Egypt for ‘several years’.” More background on the Normandie and its tech specs can be found here andhere.

National Bank of Egypt has chosen joint lead arrangers for a potential USD-denominated benchmark bond issue, tapping Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, HSBC, National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Standard Chartered Bank. Reuters speculates the issuance would be north of USD 500 mn and says NBE expects the bond to be rated B-/B by Standard & Poor’s and Fitch. The roadshow will hit major centers in the Middle East and Europe and the issuance could take place this year, depending on market conditions. The story has also crossed to the domestic press, with Al-Mal running a Bloomberg dispatch on the subject.

“Stock Up on Those Luxury Sheets Because Egyptian Cotton’s Getting Scarce,” write Salma El-Wardany and Whitney McFerron for Bloomberg, using a U.S. Department of Agriculture prediction that Egyptian cotton production will fall 35% in the next season to its lowest level on record to springboard into a look at the cotton industry today. If you’re not up to speed on the perennial challenges the industry faces — let alone the impact of falling subsidies — this is a very solid primer.

Egypt will invest USD 100 mn in the Africa50 Infrastructure fund, a government source told Amwal Al Ghad. The source said the decision was reached following meetings with African Development Bank officials this month. According to the AfDB, “Africa50 will focus on high-impact national and regional projects in the energy, transport, ICT and water sectors.”

Bye-bye: Bisco Misr’s EGM approved a decision to delist from the stock exchange, according to a statement sent to EGX. Bisco Misr, of which Kellogg owns 85.93% now, will offer to buy the shares of shareholders disapproving of the delisting at EGP 89.86 per share — EGP 14.68 per share more than the fair value assigned by Pharos Holding, which acted as an independent financial advisor.

BMIC stake sale talks are over: EK Holding sent a statement to the EGX saying its board of directors decided to end negotiations that were taking place with South Valley Cement about the sale of EK Holdings’ stake cement manufacturer BMIC. The EGX resumed trading on EK Holdings’ stock yesterday following the announcement. The bourse also fined EK Holdings and South Valley Cement EGP 25,000 each for violating disclosure regulations.

If democracy in Egypt cannot be stimulated directly, it can be promoted by example: The above revelation may have partly inspired the latest piece by Jan Claudius Völkel, visiting professor and DAAD long-term lecturer at Cairo University, in OpenDemocracy: “How can western diplomats, for instance, ask the Egyptian government not to extend internet surveillance of oppositionists and youth activists, if their governments back home have no words of condemnation for the apparent global surveillance activities of NSA, GCHQ, and other secret services?”

Etisalat shares soar as foreign ownership ban ends: Bloomberg reports that Etisalat shares gained 15 percent, its sharpest rise in 10 years, after the UAE removed a ban on foreign ownership of the stock. Foreign ownership is now capped at 20%; the move could mean Etisalat “may be considered for inclusion in MSCI Inc.’s emerging markets index, EFG-Hermes Holding said in an e-mailed note to clients.”

Daesh, in their latest desperate bid to stay relevant and in the media’s spotlight, released a 7-minute video showing increasingly deranged methods of execution, with one group of prisoners lowered in a metal cage into a swimming pool with underwater cameras to film their drowning. Another group was placed in a car that was then hit with an RPG, while a third group was sent to its death with members wearing necklace bombs. We’re calling this what it is: A despicable media stunt, and we’re not playing along.Enterprise will not be including links to articles, images or videos of these executions.

Meanwhile, Al Jazeera, whose journalist Ahmed Mansour continues to monopolize international headlines on Egypt by saying that Egypt has vowed to hunt him down, recently conducted a poll of its viewers asking whether they approved of Daesh victories in Syria and Iraq. The results? 81.60% of the 54,000 respondents gave the terrorists the thumbs-up, as reported by Al Jazeera presenter Faisal Al Qassem on “Opposite Direction.” Al Qassem then gave a Sweden-based Iraqi politician an unchallenged platform to praise Daesh for their creation of a “Caliphate.” (Watch in Arabic with English subtitles, running time: 1:56)

CORRECTION: On the off-chance that you missed our correction email yesterday, Osama Bishai remains CEO of Orascom Construction. There has been no change in its board of directors or management. The disclosure that we cited was made by Orascom Construction Industries (اوراسكوم للإنشاء والصناعة) S.A.E not Orascom Construction Limited (اوراسكوم كونستراكشن).
A clarification on the subject is available on OC’s website.

***
A MESSAGE FROM PHAROS HOLDING

The sell-off of South Valley Cement shares has created a significant opportunity

Following the failure of South Valley Cement’s (SVC) negotiations to acquire Egyptian Kuwaiti Holding’s (EKH) stake in Building Materials Industries Company (BMIC) — a 1.8 MTPA cement producer in the governorate in Assiut — an unjustified selloff of SVC’s shares saw it shed 11.1% of its value in June alone and 36.3% YTD.

Pharos views this as an opportunity to buy into SVC given that its shares are trading c.80% below the investment bank’s fair value estimate, noting that said estimate does not factor in any acquisition deals or organic growth and capacity expansions. Pharos also adds that SVC’s enterprise value, according to current market levels, falls short of reflecting the average investment cost for its cement mill nor does it account for SVC’s 47.6% stake in BMIC. Click here to dive into the numbers
***

PODCAST

We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: If you’re an econ / finance / business geek, there’s no better way to ease the agony of a Cairo commute — particularly during Ramadan — than listening to the Planet Moneypodcast. The two most recent episodes look at whether there’s “some falling anvil that’s about to crush to economy” and whether price tags are about to become a thing of the past (ie: Will the whole world’s shopping experience soon resemble some digital-age visit to Khan El-Khalili?)

No clue how to listen to a podcast? It’s dead easy. Find the purple Podcast icon on your iPhone. Tap it. Tap “Search” on the bottom right and enter “Planet Money.” Or better yet, go to the Top Charts and sample the Enterprise Starter Kit:

• Planet Money
• Freakonomics Radio
• StartUp Podcast (start with season one)
• The ridiculously eclectic Tim Ferriss Show

Podcasts stream over cellular / mobile data as you listen to them, and you can also set them to download in the background when you’re connected to WiFi.

SPOTLIGHT ON POLITICS

El-Sisi’s call for single national electoral list still unanswered

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s call for political parties to form a single electoral list still goes unanswered. Multiple blocs have been formed, and if you had doubts, you may now lay them to rest: These people share little in the way of common ground.

The most noteworthy alliances are Fi Hob Masr (For the Love of Egypt) and the Egyptian Front. The larger of the two blocs, Fi Hob Masr includes El-Masryeen Al-Ahrar, New Wafd as well as theConservative Party and Tamarod, among others. Fi Hob Masr spokesman Emad Gad denies that members of the alliance have met with any other political faction — presumably the nice folks at Egyptian Front — to discuss forming a single national electoral list. Further complicating matters, there are signs of tensions within Fi Hob Masr itself: Al Wafd spokesperson Bahgat El Hossami has said his party is not interested in participating in a unified list with the Conservative Party, a fellow member of Fi Hob Masr. Confused? It seems they are, too.

Oh, and as the Egyptian Front has been similarly charged, Fi Hob Masr has been accused by other parties ofreceiving special backing from the state.

The Egyptian Front, which includes Amr Moussa’s Congress Party and is spearheaded by the Egyptian Patriotic Movement (EPM), is in a state of disarray following Ahmed Shafiq’s resignation as leader of the EPM. The movement is now divided between those looking to talk Shafiq (who remains in the UAE) out of resignation, and those who want to start a new party.

Against that backdrop, Al Ghad Party chief Moussa Moustafa Moussa says it’s not true that Egyptian Front and Fi Hob Masr are refusing to work together. In fact, he said, members of the two alliances met on Sunday to discuss running a list in Upper Egypt list. What’s more, Moussa claims a number of meetings are set to take place ahead of an announcement declaring the merger of the two lists. Bizarre indeed.

Chiming in with some color commentary, Hassan Nafiah from Cairo University’s Faculty of Economics and Political Science says the idea of grouping all political parties under a unified list is unrealistic — to say nothing of being fundamentally contrary to the notion of a contested electoral process. On the other side of the spectrum, there’s Tahani El Gebali, former vice-president of the Supreme Constitutional Court, who thinks the call for a national list is meant enforce “unity” at a time when the Egyptian state is fighting wars on political, security and economic fronts. (Read)

EGYPT IN THE NEWS

The top stories on Egypt in the foreign press going into Wednesday morning continue to be the same stories from Tuesday: Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Mansour shaking his fist at Egypt, the delivery of the two Fast Missile Craft vessels from the United States, the Gaza trench, and so forth. Cutting through the noise:

The New York Times’ David Kirkpatrick plays Ramadan TV critic and armchair historian in “For Egypt, TV Show’s Shocking Twist Is Its Sympathetic Jews,” the latest of the international media’s takes on H7aret El Yahood, which Kirkpatrick describes as “this year’s most talked-about Egyptian television series, ‘The Jewish Quarter,’ which has astonished Egyptians with its sympathetic treatment of Egypt‘s Jews and its depiction of their fierce anti-Zionism.” We’re up for reading any story that quotes equally Magda Haroun, Stanford’s Joel Beinin and “The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit” author Lucette Lagnado. And our longing for the (mythological?) “golden age” of religious tolerance in Egypt aside: May we just say that H7aret El Yahood is almost unwatchably slow?

(Pacing aside, H7aret El Yahood does seem a hit with the liberal set, with physician and columnist Khaled Montasser penning an op-ed for Egypt Independent on Tuesday in which admits that while “we cannot judge based on one or two episodes, the series seems to be quite interesting. … the mental image of the Jews was handled with reason, not with emotion. For we cannot keep stereotyping the Jews as diabolical monsters or legendary dragons that breathe fire wherever they go.”)

Meanwhile: Bloomberg’s Ahmed Feteha has what could be called a colorful piece on Egypt’s informal economy, calling on President Abdel Fattah El Sisi to — somehow — incorporate the concept of fake weddings into the formal economy (didn’t know they existed to be honest; real weddings are enough of a nightmare to attend; why go to a fake one?). It’s unclear how the President, or any president anywhere, would go about doing this. Uh, taxation?

“By the time the [redacted] was [redacted], the [redacted] smoked and the five [redacted] had concluded their [redacted], the groom had collected USD 16k — a ‘profitable wedding,’ in his words … It is all part of Egypt’s vast informal economy, one that accounts for an estimated 40 percent or more of the country’s gross domestic product. With a quarter of this nation of 87 mn living in poverty, street weddings like Mohammed’s, along with a slew of similar schemes, offer Egyptians who rarely set foot in a bank a chance to secure funds. “ (ReadWelcome to Egypt’s Fake Weddings)

(We’re [redacting] above because of the filters that govern our delivery to your inboxes, not out of any Ramadan-induced piety.)

On the same subject: AMAY actually has an excellent piece on the government’s bid to measure the extent of the informal economy. The Human Development report for 2015 issued by the Ministry of Local Development and the Institute of National Planning at the Ministry of Planning revealed informal economy transactions have reached between EGP 1.2 tn and EGP 1.5 tn. The report added that the informal economy includes 18 mn establishments and 40 thousand factories attracting up 73% of new labor. While informal economy is a factor to the success of the formal economy elsewhere because, in Egypt, neglect from the government ensures that the informal economy can only contribute 2% to the formal economy. (Read in Arabic)

According to the UNDP, we can expect the 2015 Egypt Human Development report to be issued in November, where one would hope to read more on the methodology behind their attempts to measure the informal economy.

WORTH READING

Turkey threatens the major prospects for Eastern Med gas supply: Ariel Cohen writes for Security Europe on Erdogan’s intransigence and insistence on any proposed East Med pipeline running through the illegitimate state of Northern Cyprus. The Turkish despot is also arguing that any such proposal be part and parcel of reconciliation talks between the two sides of the island, as we’ve noted in the past. Natural Gas Europe notes that just last month at the 6th World Forum on Energy Regulation in Istanbul, Erdogan was quoted as saying “The natural resources surrounding Cyprus will hold a strong role in the Eastern Mediterranean energy map, as well as our energy diplomacy approach. Turkey will not give any compromise on energy policy on TRNC and the island’s energy resources. The energy resources will be the property of both sides of the island, not only Greek Cypriots.”

Cohen hopes in his piece, perhaps unrealistically, that “Given Ankara’s goodwill, Eastern Med gas projects may also be helpful in terms of resolving long lasting tensions between Cyprus and Turkey, and between Israel and the Palestinians. In addition, if the parties build a natural gas pipeline from the Israeli and Cypriot fields to Turkey, Ankara would receive massive gas transit tariffs. However, the win-win project will not be realized without President Erdogan’s blessing, and such cooperation is unlikely without close engagement by the US and EU with Ankara.” The feasibility of an alternate route for the pipeline through Greece, however, has its share of detractors.

DIPLOMACY

Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab headed a meeting of the Cabinet working group on Africa on Tuesday. The group discussed strategy for deepening economic and political cooperation with Africa, with a particular focus on countries in the Nile Basin and Horn of Africa. Trade and Industry Minister Mounir Abdelnour reviewed the tripartite SADC-EAC-COMESA trade agreement now in negotiations, while Electricity Minister Mohamed Shaker stressed that Egypt could play an integral role in the development of African countries by participating in joint electricity projects. (Read in Arabic)

Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry heads to Beirut today to participate in Arab ministerial meeting for the Review Session for European Neighborhood Policy. The meeting is a dialogue for between the EU and the southern Mediterranean states, according to a statement from MFA. (Read)

ENERGY

Negotiations with the UAE to import USD 2 bn worth of petroleum products
Al Mal | 23 June 2015
The Mahlab government is in negotiations with the UAE to import USD 2 bn worth of petroleum products to cover Egypt’s 2H2015 demands, a source told Al Mal. Egypt is looking to pay for the imports on installments with relaxed terms. Similar negotiations are also taking place with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, but the negotiations with the UAE are moving faster as an initial agreement expires at the end of June. The UAE had pledged to maintain supplies without delays as contracted. (Read in Arabic)

Shanghai Electric signs MoUs to invest USD 7 bn in Egypt
Al Borsa | 22 June 2015
China’s Shanghai Electric is looking to build a 4,640 MW coal-fired power station on the Red Sea, Al Borsa reported. The company signed an MoU for the USD 7 bn investment and began financial and technical studies for the project two months ago. The project entails two phases: one has four unit to generate 2,640 MW and the other to generate 2,000 MW. Shanghai Electric is looking to finalize an EPC and finance deal with the Electricity Ministry. (Read in Arabic)

GUPCO commissions Enppi for helipad maintenance on eight platforms
Al Mal | 23 June 2015
GUPCO, BP’s JV in Egypt, awarded Enppi a contract to maintain and amend eight helipads. The helipads are on platforms located in GUPCO’s concession in the Gulf of Suez. The maintenance operations are taking places to bring the helipads up to standard with ICAO and the Egyptian Civil Aviation Administration’s standards. (Read in Arabic)

INFRASTRUCTURE

Arab Contractors to deliver Kuwait’s Al Jahra Road Project next year
Amwal Al Ghad | 23 June 2015
Arab Contractors announced it will be delivering the Al Jahra Road Project in Kuwait next year. The project has a total cost of EGP 6.7 bn and will be built on five phases and Arab Contractors has already completed 75% of it. The Road is 142 km long and will be connected to main roads in Kuwait City. (Read in Arabic)

BASIC MATERIALS & COMMODITIES

Lemon price spike is temporary, commerce chamber member says
Al Mal | 23 June 2015
The recent spike in lemon prices is temporary, a member of the Cairo Chamber of Commerce said, and is driven by sudden drop in supply. Lemon prices are expected to return to normal levels after Ramadan. (Read in Arabic)

EGP 8 bn trade exchange target with India
Amwal Al Ghad | 23 June 2015
The Ministry of Trade and Industry aims to boost trade exchange between India and Egypt to EGP 8 bn by next year 2016, according to minister of trade Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour. Total trade exchange from 2014 amounted to EGP 5.5 bn, he stated, adding that Egypt has a good chance of boosting its exports, especially the agricultural goods. (Read in Arabic)

REAL ESTATE & HOUSING

Omar Effendi to lease or partner 28 branches
Al Borsa | 23 June 2015
The Omar Effendi Company, owned by the Holding Company for Construction and Development, is looking to lease or partner with the private sector on 28 of its branches, after a meeting with its general assembly on 30 June. The decision comes after the Holding Company for Construction and Development received offers from Egyptian investors to lease 52 of the 84 non-operational Omar Effendi branches. (Read in Arabic)

TOURISM

If you’ve put off going to visit King Tut’s mask, now may be the time to go
Ahram Online | 23 June 2015
Remember the ham-handed epoxying of the chin beard back onto King Tut’s iconic gold funerary mask on which we reported back in January? The one that a German expert said wasn’t a huge deal, but would need to be fixed? Well, it seems curators at the Egyptian Museum now agree that King Tut needs to go on vacation starting in August for proper restoration work. Ahram Online provides detail on how the fix will take place, but doesn’t provide a timeline. (Read)

TELECOMS & ICT

MCIT’s struggles to tame Telecom Egypt
Al Borsa and Al Mal | 23 June 2015
The ongoing power struggle between the MCIT and Telecom Egypt appears to bee dialed-up a notch. The ministry’s demand that TE reduce the cost that it charges private ISPs for using its internet infrastructure has been met with stiff resistance by the company. A TE committee, responsible for looking into the matter,unanimously decided to reject a “suggestion” issued by the ministry to reduce its price to ISPs. This refusal comes despite the ministry recently approving the removal of TE CEO Mohamed Nawawy and the imposition of significant changes to the company’s board in a bid to increase its influence on the company. With TE digging in its heels, Minister of CIT Khaled Negm accused the company of monopolistic practices and is threatening further pressure. If you’re late to the story, both articles linked here will get you up to speed on the background. (Read in Arabic)

BANKING & FINANCE

Syndicate finalizes loan preparations for EGPC
Al Borsa | 23 June 2015
The banking consortium organizing an EGP 10 bn loan for EGPC has finalized preparations for the funding and allocated shares for the participating banks, Al Borsa was informed. NBE will supply the biggest share with EGP 2.59 bn, Banque Misr EGP 1.81 bn, and QNB and CIB providing a total of EGP 3 bn. The remainder will be financed from Banque du Caire amongst other banks. The final agreement will be signed next week and the Electricity Ministry will guarantee the loan. (Read in Arabic)

EFSA announced regulations governing real estate financing and refinancing
Al-Borsa | 23 June 2015
The regulations outline the requirements and conditions to obtain a license for real estate financing and refinancing and were announced in the Official Gazette, Al Borsa reports. Conditions include:

• Being a Joint Stock Company (SAE);
• Having accredited auditors;
• Have no cases pending or verdicts lodged against the founders;
• Its issued capital be no less that EGP 50 mn (EGP 250 mn for real estate refinance companies) and paid-in capital of EGP 50 mn;
• At least 51% of shares must be held by a legal person; 75% for a refinance company with 50% shares being held by financial institutions;
• Managing directors and financial officers must have experience leading financial institutions.

LEGISLATION & POLICY

Regulations governing relationship between Insurers and foreign reinsurers announced
Al Borsa | 23 June 2015
EFSA has announced the regulations drafted by governing operations between insurance companies and foreign reinsurers in The Official Gazette. Al Borsa has published these regulations which you can view here. They include:

• The foreign reinsurer must have a reinsurance license from an accredited financial regulatory body;
• Both must operate under a clear contract;
• The local insurance company must hold a copy of the contract and the license;
• The local partner must inform EFSA of any violation committed by the foreign reinsurer.

LAW

Judicial system going digital, El-Zend says
Ahram Online | 23 June 2015
The Justice Ministry is pressing ahead with plans to fully computerize the nation’s judicial system, from courts to the registry office, Justice Minister Ahmed El-Zend told President Abdel Fattah El Sisi yesterday. Ten courts have been ‘computerized’ and another 20 are on their way, as is the registry office. (Read)

EGYPT POLITICS + ECONOMICS

Swiss prosecutors drop part of case against Mubarak
Associated Press | 23 June 2015
Switzerland is dropping charges of “support of a criminal organization” against former president Hosni Mubarak, close aids and family members. Mns in funds remain frozen, however, and prosecutors are still pursuing money laundry charges. (Read)

Mahlab creates commission to expedite mn feddan reclamation project
Al Mal | 23 June 2015
Picking the story up where we left off on Monday: Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab commissioned a tripartite committee to oversee the mn feddan reclamation project. The project was initiated by President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, who promised that four mn feddans will be reclaimed in his first four years in office, but the project faced multiple delays. Al Mal reports that Saudi Investors have complained about the delay in delivering the land, saying that they are willing to reclaim 300,000 feddans within 12 months. The government is still finalizing the organizational bylaws for the project. (Read in Arabic)

Cairo court overturns Ahmed Moussa sentence
Al Masry Al Youm | 23 June 2015
The North Cairo First Instance Court overturned the sentence against TV presenter Ahmed Moussa for charges of spreading false news, slander and libel, filed against him by politician Osama Ghazali Harb. Moussa was originally sentenced in absentia to two years in prison in March. (Read in Arabic)

President El Sisi greenlights 2030 development strategy
Al Shorouk | 23 June 2015
President Abdel Fattah El Sisi greenlit the 2030 development strategy in a meeting with Minister of Planning Ashraf El Arabi, according to a statement from presidency spokesperson Alaa Yousef. The strategy was devised with the help of 200 experts and consultants, most of which are from the youth, he added. The strategy revolved around two central axis; the economy and energy. The economic strategy aims at achieving high and consistent growth rates, while achieving complete economic stability, while the energy strategy involves focusing on renewable energy sources. Additionally, the strategy delves into radical and complete reform of the education system, implementing a complete health insurance system, as well as accommodating housing needs. (Read in Arabic)

ON YOUR WAY OUT

US Ambassador to Egypt Stephen Beecroft reportedly met with Interior Minister Magdi Abdel-Gaffar on Tuesday, Ahram Online reports. During the meeting, Beecroft reportedly praised the MOI’s efforts to fight terrorism and bring stability to the country. For his part, Abdel-Gaffar emphasized the importance security cooperation with the U.S., particularly in regard to “providing training programmes to security personnel.” Although the story has been widely picked up in the domestic press, we’ve yet to find confirmation of the meeting on the Embassy website, Twitter feed or other outlets.

The UK spied on Egyptian human rights NGO EIPR: Egypt Independent reports on the findings of the UK’s Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), a court mandated to investigate complaints regarding unlawful surveillance by UK intelligence agencies, which found that the Egyptian Personal Rights Initiative (EIPR) was one of just six human rights NGOs (including the ACLU) that was under covert surveillance by the UK government. (Read the court’s decision here; the section on EIPR begins on page 6)

Big brother is watching you in Sheikh Zayed: Housing Minister Moustafa Madbouli announced that surveillance cameras have been installed in entrances and popular gathering areas in Sheikh Zayed City, Al Masry Al Youm reported. The project cost EGP 5 mn and was paid for by the district council.

Egypt Post will issue a commemorative stamp for the 6 August opening of the New Suez Canal, Ahram Online reports.

Al-Ahram is establishing what it’s describing as a “special fund” to aid victims of terror and their families.

What we’re watching this Ramadan: Season 2 of True Detective aired on Sunday. We’re reserving judgment until the second episode airs, as the premiere was more about scene-setting, with three of four of the leads only meeting during the final scene. That’s not really a spoiler. Fine. Spoiler alert. For what you just read. The preview for episode is available online here, but keep in mind that there is some footage at the start of the video that be off-putting to some of our readers. (Watch, running time: 35 seconds)

BY THE NUMBERS

USD CBE auction (Tuesday, 23 June): 7.5301 (unchanged since Monday, 02 Feb)
USD parallel market (Tuesday, 23 June): 7.68 (unchanged from Sunday, 7 June, Reuters)

EGX30 (Tuesday): 8,444.93 (-0.52%)

WTI: USD 61.14 (+0.21%)
Brent: USD 64.45 (+1.75%)

TASI: 9,275.27 (-0.74%)
ADX: 4,755.60 (2.92%)
DFM: 4,144.81 (0.23%)
KSE Weighted Index: 422.78 (+0.51%)
QE: 12,090.44 (-0.25%)
MSM: 6,450.98 (-0.01%)