Led by Egyptian executive Assem Ragab, Credit Agricole Egypt raises capital by $238.3 million

A leading player in Egypt’s financial industry, Credit Agricole Egypt announced on Tues., Dec. 14, that it is increasing its capital base by EGP3.75 billion ($238.3 million). The move will see its issued capital reach as high as EGP5 billion ($317.8 million).

Credit Agricole Egypt SAE is an Egyptian bank engaged in corporate, retail and investment banking services in Egypt and other countries throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

The bank has a network of 73 branches and maintains active banking operations as a subsidiary of the French international banking group Credit Agricole Group. It operates under the leadership of Assem Ragab, a leading business executive who became chairman of the bank in 2017.

Information gathered by Billionaires.Africa revealed that the financial services provider will raise its issued capital by EGP3.75 billion ($238.3 million), distributing a total of EGP939.1 million ($59.7 million) bonus shares at a par value of EGP4 ($0.254) per share.

In line with the share distribution, the lender will grant 3.02 bonus shares for every original share to shareholders, while shareholders can expect to receive the bonus shares on Dec. 30.

The strategic capital raise will see the bank’s total issued capital surge to EGP 5 billion ($317.8 million), compared to the previous figure of EGP1.24 billion ($78.8 million).

The move comes nearly four months after the bank secured a medium-term loan agreement worth EGP150 million for Edita Food Industries, a consumer goods group led by Egyptian businessman Hani Berzi.

In the first nine months of 2021, Credit Agricole Egypt reported a profit of EGP1.167 billion ($74.4 million), up 13.8 percent from the EGP 1.031 billion ($65.5 million) reported in the prior year.

The bank’s net interest income increased to EGP 2.16 billion ($137.3 million) in January-September compared to EGP2.14 billion ($136 million) in the prior year.