Bankers acknowledge CBE, Investors Associations agreement on settling pre-float LCs

Bankers acknowledge CBE, Investors Associations agreement on settling pre-float LCs: Senior banking sector officials appeared to confirm to Reuters that the CBE has indeed reached the agreement which we noted yesterday with the Union of Egyptian Investors Associations (UEIA) on settling LC debt spikes incurred following the EGP float. Under the agreement, the CBE would cover currency differences of USD 500 mn to banks on behalf of 570 firms whose debts do not exceed USD 5 mn each," said the chairman of one of Egypt's state-owned banks who attended Monday’s meeting with the CBE and the UEIA. In return, the firms will repay the debt in the local currency at 12% interest over two years, the source acknowledged.