Under its Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership (FEMIP), the European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing EUR 25 million in support of private equity directed at Egyptian private sector companies. The funds, in the form of a risk capital line, will be channelled through selected Egyptian financial intermediaries or through EIB direct investments in private equity funds or private sector companies.
At this stage, the selected partners include the Commercial International Bank (CIB), EFG-Hermes Holding Company (EFGH), the Export Development Bank of Egypt (EDBE) and the National Bank of Egypt (NBE)
The finance agreement was signed today in Paris by Mr. Philippe de Fontaine Vive, Vice President of the EIB in charge of FEMIP, and senior representatives of the selected partners.
Mr. De Fontaine Vive commented: This is FEMIP's largest risk capital operation in 2005 and the third of this type that we set up in Egypt, confirming our engagement to support the country's private sector companies and develop its private equity markets.
In addition to increasing the availability for local final beneficiaries of relatively scarce equity and quasy-equity funding sources, the facility will endorse the development and application of best practices and private equity international standards.
Together with its loans, and technical assistance grants, risk capital is one of the main instruments deployed by FEMIP to help the Mediterranean partner countries meet the challenges of economic and social modernisation and enhanced regional integration. FEMIP risk capital is financed from the Community budget (EUR 200 million over the period 2001-2006) and by the FEMIP Trust Fund set up this year (33.5 million contributed directly by 15 of the Member States and the European Commission).