Barclays formally begins Egypt sale process
Barclays has formally begun the sale of its Egyptian unit, with two banks from the region expressing interest, according to unnamed sources speaking to Reuters on Tuesday. Banks have reportedly been asked to submit bids by the end of August, according to sources. As we noted at the beginning of last month, among the banks reportedly interested in acquiring Barclays Egypt’s assets is Emirates NBD, according to the sources, having previously bought BNP Paribas’ Egyptian unit in 2013. Perella Weinberg Partners is said to be advising Emirates NBD. The other bank reportedly looking at buying up Barclays Egypt’s assets is Attijariwafa Bank, Morocco’s biggest by assets, and has retained UBS as its adviser. Despite their name having been mentioned as a contender for at least the past month and a half, Emirates NBD declined to comment to Reuters. Attijariwafa didn’t immediately reply to the request to comment. Barclays has 56 branches and 127k customers in Egypt.