It would appear that Egypt has received the first USD 500 mn tranche of a USD 2.5 bn Saudi grant to help finance the government’s economic development agenda, a government source tells Al Mal.  Saudi Arabia is expected to complete the transfer of the USD 2.5 bn grant to Egypt by January 2017, said International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr according to Al Mal. Nasr stated that the grant will not require an approval from the House of Representatives by virtue of being a grant that would not require funds from the budget to repay, AMAY reports. The same could not be said for a USD 1.5 bn loan from the Saudi Fund for Development to develop Sinai, an agreement initially inked in March. The Fund will hold off on sending the first USD 500 tranche of this loan pending parliamentary approval, said Nasr. As we noted last week, a delegation from the fund was in Egypt to discuss how it would be dispersed. Parliament’s approval will also be sought for another USD 200 mn in financing for Sinai development, according to a statement from the ministry.