A planned roadshow for the Sovereign Fund of Egypt’s pre-IPO fund by the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) has been pushed to late December or the beginning of January, Planning Minister Hala El Said said in an interview with Al Borsa. The roadshow was planned for the end of November but was delayed due to COP27, El Said said, without providing further details.

We don’t have names yet: The fund, which was announced in September to market state-owned companies to regional wealth funds, currently includes five companies, El Said said, remaining tight-lipped on the names of the companies. The minister said initially that by the middle of October assets worth up to USD 3 bn would be transferred to the fund and that the government would announce the names of the companies, but one month on we remain none the wiser. Press reports have suggested that the Siemens-built combined-cycle power plant in Beni Suef could be destined for the fund but this has not been confirmed.

Why this is important: The pre-IPO fund is one of the key mechanisms by which the government says it will try to relaunch its largely stalled privatization program. The fund will offer stakes in state-owned companies to strategic investors and sovereign funds ahead of listing them on the bourse, bringing in as much as USD 6 bn. The fund plans to market several state companies — including the military-owned firms Safi and Wataniya — to strategic investors ahead of IPOing them on the EGX. Neither Safi nor Wataniya will make their EGX debuts this year but could see a private stake sale before year end.