Ibnsina Pharma’s sales practices did not break competition rules, the company’s Co-CEO Omar Abdel Gawad told Bloomberg. His comments followed the Cairo Court of Appeals agreeing to hear Ibnsina’s appeal on a ruling that fined the company, alongside three other pharma manufacturers, a combined EGP 5.6 bn for alleged antitrust violations. “The opinion of the lawyers we consulted is that our position is very strong and this is why we haven’t sought a reconciliation,” Abdel Gawad explained, adding that the company is confident the fine will be overturned. On the other hand, Head of the Egyptian Competition Authority, Mona El Garf, said, “We are 100 percent sure that there is a violation and we see this ruling as fair and necessary to deter pharmaceutical companies attempting to breach the law.”

CLARIFICATION- On a related note, sources had told us that Cairo Poultry was not among the 12 poultry companies indicted by the Prosecutor General and sentenced by the Economic Court in an antitrust case. Al Borsa had named the company as part of the Egyptian Competition Authority’s investigation into the case back in August 2017.