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Thursday, 3 March 2022

UAE-based Gulf Capital to invest USD 250 mn in Egypt, will use Cairo as hub for Egypt and Africa

UAE-based asset management firm Gulf Capital plans to invest some USD 250 mn in Egypt over the next five years, Hapi Journal quoted CEO and co-founder Karim El Solh as saying at a presser yesterday. The fund manager will target companies in the tech, fintech, e-commerce and healthcare sectors.

From Cairo to Kenya: Gulf Capital plans to use its newly opened Cairo office as a launchpad for geographical expansion across African markets, particularly Kenya and Tanzania, El Solh added.

Gulf Capital has tapped two senior Egyptian investment professionals to run the office. Miray Zaki (Linkedin) was previously chief investment officer of the Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation and was earlier with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, while Fady George (Linkedin) joins from SPE Capital Partners. Zaki is MD and head of Egypt for the firm, while George joins as a VP.

The firm has invested north of EGP 5 bn here in sectors including technology, infrastructure, manufacturing, petrochemicals, healthcare, healthtech, business services, and oil and gas services, it said in a press release. Gulf Capital’s private equity portfolio in Egypt includes digital healthcare platform Vezeeta and glass manufacturer Middle East Glass.

What sectors does Gulf Capital like going forward? It name-checked technology, healthcare, business services, consumer and sustainability.

The firm is planning to exit one of its local investments through an IPO on the EGX, Al Mal quotes El Solh as saying. He didn’t disclose the name of the company, the sector in which it operates, or the expected size or timeline of the listing, saying that preparations are still at an early stage. The firm plans to exit another of its Egyptian subsidiaries through a sale to a strategic investor, El Solh added.

Egypt is increasingly popular among Gulf investors: First Abu Dhabi Bank’s offer to buy a majority stake in leading financial services provider EFG Hermes is only the latest sign of a growing interest in the Egyptian market among Gulf companies. FAB last year purchased Bank Audi Egypt, while Bahrain’s Bank ABC acquired Blom Bank’s Egypt arm last August. And a consortium of Aldar and Abu Dhabi wealth fund ADQ closed in December its acquisition of our friends at SODIC.

About Gulf Capital: The asset management firm focuses primarily on late-stage control buy-outs, growth capital, private debt and real estate projects in the Middle East region. The company currently holds some USD 2.5 bn in assets under management.

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