2022 might have coincided with a downturn in global M&A — but the same can’t be said for Egypt: Globally, 2022 hasn’t been a great year for M&A. After reaching a record high of USD 5.8 tn in 2021, the value of global transactions has fallen this year as rising interest rates and market turbulence restricted funding and hit corporate valuations. Dealogic data reported by Reuters last week put the total figure for 2022 at USD 3.66 tn, down 37% from 2021.

The same can’t be said for Egypt, where Gulf sovereign wealth funds — triggered by the economic crisis — led a buying spree that has further consolidated the GCC’s key role in the Egyptian economy.

According to the Enterprise M&A Tracker:

• M&A volumes more than doubled in 2022: The number of completed transactions in Egypt rose to 66 in 2022, up from 31 the previous year.
• Most of the money flowed in: The vast majority of M&A transactions were inbound, with only a handful of Egyptian companies making deals overseas.
• Foreign inbound M&A was dominated by the Gulf: Companies and institutions in Saudi Arabia and the UAE were involved in 40 transactions between them in 2022 while Kuwait and Qatar were involved in a few.
• The most popular sector was: Banking + financial services, followed by manufacturing and energy. According to our records, 16 M&As were completed in the banking sector in 2022, nine in manufacturing and four in energy, two of which were in renewables.

The Biggest M&A Transaction of the Year award goes to…: Vodacom’s acquisition of Vodafone Group’s 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt was easily the biggest transaction in the Egyptian market in 2022, coming in at almost EUR 2.4 bn (c. USD 2.5 bn / EGP 47 bn). The companies recently completed the deal, with the British firm confirming earlier this month that it had transferred the shares to its South African subsidiary.

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) tried to pull off what would have been the most significant acquisition in Egypt’s financial services sector in years: In February, the Emirati lender offered to purchase a majority stake in EFG Hermes in a transaction that at the time valued it at around EGP 18.5 bn (c. USD 1.2 bn), only to drop the bid two months later after the global markets were upended by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

2022 was the year of the Gulf sovereign wealth fund: The economic crisis allowed Gulf wealth funds, particularly those in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, to significantly increase their clout in the Egyptian economy while helping to shore up the country’s dwindling supply of foreign currency. In addition to depositing USD 10 bn at the central bank, Abu Dhabi’s ADQ and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) have spent some USD 3.1 bn to acquire significant minority stakes in some of the EGX’s strongest companies from the government.

Together, the two funds now own almost half of two of Egypt’s biggest fertilizer companies: ADQ and the PIF now own 41.5% of Abu Qir Fertilizers and 45% of Misr Fertilizers Production Company (Mopco).

The financial sector was also one of their biggest targets: ADQ became the single-biggest shareholder of the country’s largest private-sector bank CIB and its leading fintech firm Fawry. The fund bought a 17.2% stake in CIB for USD 911.5 mn and 11.8% of Fawry for almost USD 55 mn. Meanwhile, the PIF took a 25% stake in e-Finance, the government’s venture into the fintech sector, and is reportedly currently in talks with the central bank to fully acquire United Bank.

Pharma + retail: The PIF increased its footprint in Egypt’s pharma sector by purchasing 4.7% of EIPICO and upping its holdings of Rameda to become the company’s second-largest shareholder. It also acquired 34% of consumer electronics and household appliances retailer BTECH for an undisclosed amount while ADQ completed the purchase of Abu Auf parent Auf Group. The PIF, alongside other undisclosed funds, also made an entrance into the education sector with the acquisition of a 15% stake in CIRA Education.

A play for the Egyptian real estate sector: ADQ, alongside Emirati real estate giant Aldar Properties, acquired SODIC in late 2021. Under its new ownership, SODIC — already one of Egypt’s leading developers — has moved to expand its footprint this year. After failing in its bid to take over Madinet Nasr Housing & Development (MNHD) in the summer, the developer recently submitted an initial offer to acquire 100% of Orascom for Real Estate and is currently performing due diligence.

And Egyptian ports:

#1- Alexandria Container & Cargo Handling is now majority-owned by Gulf wealth funds after state institutions agreed to sell shares to bring in vital supplies of hard currency. ADQ acquired a third of the EGX-listed company for USD 186.1 mn in April and the Public Investment Fund followed suit four months later, buying a 20% stake for around USD 156.3 mn.

#2- One of the country’s leading private-sector shipping firms is now owned by ADQ’s ADP: Abu Dhabi Ports, majority-owned by ADQ, paid USD 140 mn to purchase a 70% stake in International Associated Cargo Carrier (IACC), an Egyptian investment firm that owns two local maritime logistics companies: shipping firm company Transmar and terminal operator Transcargo International (TCI).

It’s not just Gulf wealth funds that are hungry for Egyptian assets: Several private-sector actors from Saudi Arabia and the UAE have made significant acquisitions this year. Both the Egyptian Belgian Company — best known for its Ole-branded baked goods — and Giza Systems are now in Saudi hands. From the Emirati private sector, the Dubai-based National Paints Holdings is attempting to take over the EGX-listed Paint and Chemical Industries (Pachin), more than half of which is owned by state institutions, while investment firm Rimco bought 3% of leading snack food maker Edita. Meanwhile, the distribution arm of the UAE’s state oil company, Adnoc, launched a bid to acquire half of TotalEnergies’ Egyptian subsidiary, which is one of the biggest fuel retail operators in the country.

One non-state Emirati investment group has been particularly active in Egypt this year: Chimera Investments acquired 56% of Beltone Financial for EGP 384.8 mn (USD 20.3 mn) in July, and followed that up with the purchase of a 22% stake in MNT Investments, which is majority-owned by GB Capital. The GB Auto subsidiary also agreed this month to sell a 45% stake in GB Lease to the Abu Dhabi-based investment firm, a transaction which could close before the end of the year should GB Auto board give the sale its blessing.

Don’t forget the Qataris: One of the key factors motivating Egypt to bury the hatchet with its erstwhile regional foe has been the hunt for new foreign direct investment, and Doha has been only too happy to enter into talks to acquire stakes in Egyptian companies. Leading the discussions on the Qatari side has been the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) — the country’s wealth fund — which has been reported to be considering spending as much as USD 2.5 bn to purchase government-held shares in a number of companies including Vodafone Egypt.

Talks with the wealth fund have dragged on for much of the year with few updates from the parties involved, though the QIA did deposit USD 1 bn at the Central Bank of Egypt as a stop-gap until agreements are finalized. This took the amount deposited at the CBE by Doha in 2022 to USD 4 bn after an initial USD 3 bn transfer in the wake of the economic crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. Qatar pledged in March to invest USD 5 bn in Egypt in response to the crisis.

It’s not just the wealth fund, though: Qatari dairy producer Baladna became Juhayna’s third-largest shareholder with a series of share purchases through the year that saw it acquire more than 10% of the company.

valU went on an M&A spree: EFG Hermes’ consumer finance arm valU began its expansion into Saudi Arabia with the announcement of a partnership with the Alhokair family. In June, the companies said that valU had agreed to purchase 35% of new Saudi NBFS player Fas Finance from Alhokair’s Fas Labs, while the three Alhokair brothers would buy a 5% stake in valU. The non-bank lender followed this up by acquiring HR and payroll platform Paynas in August and fintech Kiwe in October, as well making an investment in MENA e-commerce platform Hoods. 2023 looks like it will be more of the same for the company after it announced this month that it was setting aside USD 25 mn for fresh acquisitions and the rollout of new products.