Good afternoon, friends, and congratulations on making it to the halfway mark of the workweek. The news cycle is taking a breather, and we’d suggest you do the same.

THE BIG STORY TODAY-

Fresh green bond issuance may make its way to the market soon: Egypt plans to issue a new tranche of sustainable sovereign green bonds, a senior government source told EnterpriseAM. The Finance Ministry, in consultation with the offering advisors, is considering either replacing the bond maturing in September or reopening the current bond for another five years.

Where will the proceeds go? The green bonds are likely to finance some social and environmental projects under the government’s investment plan for the current fiscal year, according to our source.

Debt issuance calendar already packed: Egypt is also planning to issue new tranches of Panda + Samurai green bonds to finance a range of sustainable development projects, with the government looking to pull the trigger on the issuance during the current fiscal year.

In the bigger picture: The Finance Ministry targets to issue up to USD 4 bn in international bonds over the next 12 months, to help address its USD 11 bn external financing gap. The planned issuances could include EUR- and USD-denominated securities, sustainability bonds, sukuk, and CNY- or JPY-denominated instruments.

Mark your calendar for the 2025 EnterpriseAM Egypt Forum, our flagship forum and part of our must-attend series of invitation-only, C-suite-level gatherings. Tap to register your interest to attend. Want to partner with us? Reach out to Moustafa Taalab at mtaalab@enterprisemea.com to explore sponsorship opportunities.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

Musk to sue Apple over unfavourable App Store rankings: Tech b’naire Elon Musk’s latest online rant saw him threatening Apple with a lawsuit over alleged antitrust violations. Musk believes that the iPhone maker is rigging App Store rankings, pushing down Grok AI in favor of competitors such as ChatGPT — which currently occupies the first position on the store’s unpaid apps list. “Apple is behaving in a manner that makes it impossible for any AI company besides OpenAI to reach #1 in the App Store, which is an unequivocal antitrust violation. xAI will take immediate action,” Musk posted on X.

Anything but first place won’t cut it for the b’naire. Musk accused Apple of “playing politics,” tipping the scales in OpenAI’s favor — with whom Apple has recently partnered to integrate ChatGPT into their software. ChatGPT, however, also leads the rankings on Google’s Play Store. “Apple didn’t just put their thumb on the scale, they put their whole body,” Musk wrote. Musk provided no supporting evidence for his claims. (CNN | Reuters | Business Insider | AP)

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- The heat wave continues, with temperatures in Cairo set to peak at 41°C, before cooling down to 26°C. It’s more of the same up north, with a high of 32°C and a low of 27°C, according to our favorite weather app.

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