Qalaa wants to follow up TAQA Arabia with another direct listing on the EGX:Qalaa Holdings is planning to take its printing subsidiary public on the EGX, Chairman Ahmed Heikal told Hapi Journal in an interview published yesterday. The National Printing Company is close to meeting the EGX’s listing requirements and will soon join the bourse via a direct listing, he said. The interview comes a week after Qalaa’s energy distribution company TAQA Arabia made its debut on the EGX via a direct listing. Company representatives could not be reached for comment on the interview when we reached out.

Firm to file registration docs within three months:Heikal said that the company plans to submit its registration documents to the EGX and the Financial Regulatory Authority by October. The company will then have six months to start trading.

About the firm: National Printing Company was set up in 2006 by Qalaa subsidiary Grandview, which currently owns c.53% of the company, according to its website. The company is one of the country’s largest producers of packaging and printing products, and reported a 54% increase in revenues to EGP 1.4 bn in 1Q 2023.

Restructuring planned: The company is planning to restructure its ownership after listing, where debts owed to shareholders will be converted into equity and some indirect stakes will be converted into direct stakes, Heikal told the newspaper. “It’s too early to disclose the shares resulting from the debts to be settled, or the shares to be converted to direct contributions,” he said.

Advisors: EFG Hermes is acting as the financial advisor and Zulficar & Partners is providing counsel, Hapi reported, citing anonymous sources.

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