Saudi Arabia pauses wealth fund plan to acquire Egyptian bank – sources

Saudi Arabia pauses wealth fund plan to acquire Egyptian bank – sources

DUBAI - Saudi Arabia has put a plan by its sovereign wealth fund to acquire the United Bank of Egypt on hold because of a disagreement with the Egyptian authorities over its valuation, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The pause is the most recent stumble in vast investment programme promised by Gulf states after Russia's invasion of Ukraine prompted foreign investors to pull more than $20 billion out of Egyptian markets, throwing its economy into crisis.

Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Qatar last year all promised to make large investments to help Cairo shore up its finances. Saudi Arabia deposited $5 billion with Egypt's central bank in March, and in June said it intended to lead $30 billion worth of investments following a visit to Cairo by de facto Saudi ruler and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) began talks last year with Egyptian authorities about buying United Bank.

The two parties could not come to an agreement over how to value the government-owned lender due to the devaluation of the pound, and both parties are holding their positions, the sources said.

Egypt has allowed its currency to depreciate by almost 50% since the outbreak of the