Post for Investment (PFI) marked one of its most productive years yet, launching a digital factoring arm, and rolling out a new investment services marketplace. We spoke with CEO and Managing Director Ahmed Ali Abdelrahman on the sidelines of the EnterpriseAM Egypt Forum 2025, where he shared an upbeat outlook on Egypt’s economy, citing improving fundamentals, ongoing reforms, and a monetary easing cycle that he says will unlock new private-sector investment, particularly across financial services and logistics.

EnterpriseAM: So, what’s new with PFI?

Ahmed Ali Abdelrahman: I think we have a very exciting year. 2025 was actually one of the most productive in terms of the transactions that we had this year. We had two transactions that we’ve been working on since 2024.

To start with, we closed 2024 on a very positive note as we signed off on our new venture with AXA International to set up a new micro-insurance business. This is a major milestone that complements our existing mandate and portfolio.

In the meantime, we’ve launched our digital factoring company, which has received initial approval from the FRA and is working on the final approval. We’ve also scaled our PFI Investment Service, which is going to be the marketplace for investment funds in Egypt. We also have quite a few transactions in the pipeline and hopefully will close one by the end of this year.

EnterpriseAM: What are the promising sectors you see today in Egypt?

AA: At PFI, we focus on certain sectors where we believe we can add value. Our strategy focuses on the entire financial services spectrum as a whole — the NBFI sector, investment services, and insurance.

These three sectors under the financial services space are quite interesting for us. We also have a focus on the logistics business, where we believe we can add value. This comes again from our strategy, which leverages our DNA as an investment holding company of Egypt Post, which primarily works in the financial as well as logistics businesses. These sectors, among others, have a strong investment outlook, and we’re hopeful that we can conclude a transaction or two during the upcoming year.

EnterpriseAM: On a personal level, which asset class or asset classes do you prefer to invest in at the moment?

AA: It’s a very volatile market at the moment. Asset classes across the board have reached a point where you have to be cautious when selecting a certain one.

However, we believe the stock market still holds a lot of potential given the cheap valuations we’re seeing today and the fundamental and structural reforms that started early last year. So, I think the stock market would be my first pick.

Private equity as an asset class — since it’s our core area of expertise — and the companies that are benefiting from the current reforms will definitely require growth capital, which we can provide as a growth capital provider in industries where there’s tangible value added. Again, the logistics and industrial sectors are areas where we believe we can add a lot of value.

EnterpriseAM: What exchange rate are you considering in your 2026 budget?

AA: It’s a million-dollar question. Everybody is wondering how the exchange rate will look. We’ve heard a number of panelists projecting an average exchange rate between EGP 48 and EGP 50 for the USD; we’ve also heard EGP 55. I believe working in the neighborhood between 46 and up to 50 would be a realistic assumption for 2026.

EnterpriseAM: How do you plan to finance growth in 2026? And where do you see interest rates needing to be to unlock private sector borrowing in a meaningful way?

AA: It’s been a challenging year and a half since the rate hike in March 2024 — a very tough market to navigate. Borrowing costs have risen to levels that have become prohibitive for new investments. Now, with the easing cycle taking place since the start of 2025, we’ve seen almost 6–6.25 percentage points coming down from the 8% we saw in 2024.

I think we’re on the right track to capture the downward trend that I believe will continue during the remainder of 2025 and 2026 as well. Historically, in Egypt’s interest rate environment, the level where you see 12–15% is a normalized rate that would encourage more investment and support expansion plans. We’ve already seen some indications of private sector CAPEX projects coming in. So, to answer your question, we’re talking about 12–15% as a normalized rate for the upcoming period.

EnterpriseAM: Has AI had any impact on your hiring plan at PFI?

AA: Honestly, in our field of business, I don’t think AI is going to help much. Probably at the portfolio level, where we’re leveraging one of our portfolio companies — Wavz — which is working on many digital transformation and AI projects. Indirectly, portfolio companies will definitely benefit from the AI wave we’re seeing. As far as PFI is concerned, there could be some optimization, but to tangibly feel it today, I think it will take more time.

EnterpriseAM: Are you optimistic or pessimistic about 2026, and why?

AA:Definitely optimistic. The fundamental story of Egypt is still intact — actually, it’s on the rise. If you heard the two ministers this morning, it’s quite apparent that we’re on the right track. FDIs will definitely come, and the private sector is much more encouraged than before. So, I’m very optimistic about 2026 and what it holds for Egypt.

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