A nother Gulf acquisition of an Egyptian pharma group in the works? A number of Gulf investors are interested in acquiring a stake in distressed pharma wholesaler United Company of Pharmacists(UCP), Al Mal reported yesterday, citing sources familiar with the matter. The company, one of the largest pharma distributors in Egypt, is looking to find new sources of finance to solve a growing financial crisis at the firm caused by the accumulation of “huge” amounts of debt, the newspaper reports.

Who’s interested? Saudi company Tamer Group was the only investor named by the newspaper as having entered negotiations with UCP over a potential acquisition.

What we know: UCP’s general manager Mohamed Galal confirmed to Enterprise yesterday that several Arab investors and funds have expressed interest in investing but that the company has not yet received any takeover offers. We were unable to confirm the identities of any of the investors.

Who owns what: The family of the founder, Hossam Omar, jointly own UCP with an American partner in a 50/50 split, who Galal declined to disclose when we asked. We believe the company to be Walgreens Boots Alliance, which acquired UCP’s former shareholder Alliance Boots in 2014. The company wants to sell its entire stake in the company, according to Al Mal.

UCP is a major player: The group has a third of the share of the local pharma distribution market, according to the group’s website. UCP currently supplies 38.5k pharmacies and 2k hospitals.

Just one option: Daily News Egypt reported last month that UCP has been looking at several options for financially restructuring the company, including a stake sale to a strategic investor and fresh borrowing.

What’s next: Galal said that he expects a partnership agreement or investment framework to be finalized within the next three months.

POST FOR INVESTMENT INVESTS IN ROADERZ-

The state postal service just took a minority stake in a logistics startup: The investment and logistics arms of Egypt Post will acquire a 40% stake in logistics platform Roaderz, the company said in a statement yesterday. Post for Investment and Post for Distribution will both acquire shares in the company, according to the statement, which didn’t disclose the transaction value.

Roaderz: Founded in 2021 by e-payments giant Fawry, logistics startup Mylerz, tech solutions firm Softec, and Confida Ventures Managing Partner Ammar Zawaideh, Roaderz is a crowdsourcing platform that connects couriers and small delivery firms with e-commerce merchants, while allowing sellers to request couriers on demand or schedule their services in advance.

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