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HSBC has raised Swvl’s working capital facility by 110% to USD 1.4 mn, according to a press release. The Egypt-founded, Nasdaq-listed mass transit app is also rolling out HSBC’s global payment solutions in Egypt to handle high-volume, time-sensitive payments across its network of operators, suppliers, and business partners. The facility, established in November 2024 and anchored in Egypt, will cover the working capital needs of Swvl’s new and renewing enterprise contracts across Egypt, the GCC, the UK, and the US.
ICYMI- Swvl Holdings entered into a definitive agreement in late August for a USD 13 mn private placement priced at the market under Nasdaq rules — a round since upsized to c. USD 14.5 mn. Coefficient LP, a Houston-based investment firm backed by the Sawiris family, is leading the round with USD 10 mn and will become Swvl’s largest institutional shareholder once the transaction closes, with an existing shareholder contributing the remaining USD 3 mn. The additional USD 1.5 mn came from Sofico Holdings Limited, a Cairo-based family investment company.
BACKGROUND- Swvl received a Nasdaq delisting notice in November 2025 after its market cap sat well below the exchange’s USD 35 mn minimum, but it stayed compliant by meeting the alternative net income and shareholders’ equity standards. The company returned to profitability with net income of USD 1.3 mn in 2025, reversing the prior year’s loss as its 2023-2024 restructuring toward B2B and B2G contracts began to pay off. Egypt remains its biggest market by revenue share, with revenues growing 20% y-o-y to USD 16.2 mn.
Agreements on Ras El Hekma’s dunes
ADQ-backed developer Modon Holding has awarded a third large-scale development contract at Ras El Hekma’s Wadi Yemm, this time to a REDCON Construction-Innovo Group consortium for roughly EGP 12 bn, Asharq Business reports, citing two sources familiar with the matter. The scope covers infrastructure and residential works within the first district of Ras El Hekma, to be delivered within 18 months of signing, according to one source.
IN CONTEXT- Modon has now handed out three large-scale development packages at Wadi Yemm, plus a hospitality-specific contract: Orascom Construction got an EGP 15 bn development contract for residential units, offices, and a 70-room hotel, alongside infrastructure; the Rowad Modern Engineering-Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) consortium landed an EGP 10 bn roads and utilities package; and Hassan Allam Construction is building the Montage Hotel and Branded Residences there.
About the project: Wadi Yemm — the first district breaking ground within the USD 35 bn megaproject — will house residential units, hotels, two golf courses, a country club, and a 10k-seat open-air theater, per the project’s website. ADQ named Modon the master developer for Ras El Hekma in October 2024, tasking it with the first 50 mn sqm. The remaining 120 mn sqm will go to other local, Emirati, and international partners.
Space ties
Egypt and Saudi Arabia are working through the roadmap for designing and building their first jointly developed satellite. A Saudi Space Agency delegation met Egyptian Space Agency CEO Maged Ismail on the sidelines of the El Alamein International Airshow to discuss the implementation plan, according to a LinkedIn post. The project pitch is to use space technology for sustainable development and meet priorities shared by the two countries. The statement gave no budget, launch timeline, or technical specifications.
REMEMBER- Egypt is being considered as a candidate for the Makkah defense pact, amid a widening slate of Egypt-Saudi cooperation across real estate, energy, and education. Recent developments include a partnership between PIF and Talaat Moustafa Group to expand the developer’s presence in the Kingdom, alongside a 3 GW electricity interconnection project the two countries are advancing.
EgyptAir down under
EgyptAir wants to fly to Australia from 2027, with plans to launch a link between Cairo and Sydney via Singapore, subject to regulatory approval, according to a press release. Egypt is Sydney Airport’s largest unserved market in Africa, per the release, and the route would serve Australian travelers and Egypt’s 43k-plus-strong diaspora in Australia. Details on timelines, aircraft, and ticket pricing have yet to be disclosed.
It wouldn’t be the first time: EgyptAir suspended a twice-weekly Cairo-Singapore-Sydney service in July 2002 and then shelved plans to reroute it through Kuala Lumpur, Aviation Week reported at the time.
IN CONTEXT- The route is part of a broader network buildout tied to fleet modernization. EgyptAir launched direct Cairo-Los Angeles and Cairo-Chicago routes on its new Airbus A350-900s earlier this year and added two weekly Cairo-Zanzibar flights on its 737-8 Max fleet this month. The move also aligns with Egypt’s goal of welcoming 30 mn annual visitors by FY 2029/30.
No East Africa, yet
EGX-listed Telecom Egypt (TE) pushed back on reports that it is planning an expansion into an East African market, saying in a bourse disclosure (pdf) that no investment decision or plan has been approved at this stage. Details circulating about a specific country, how much it would spend, or what it would build on the ground aren’t approved decisions, TE said. However, it noted that looking at offshore growth opportunities is something it does routinely, and that any material move will be disclosed once it gets the green light.
REFRESHER- TE pulled the plug on its planned sale of a majority stake in its Regional Data Center Hub (RDH) to UK-based, Africa-focused private equity firm Helios Investment Partners. Helios had preliminary board approval back in September 2025 to buy 75-80% of a subsidiary that would own RDH, on a binding offer valuing the hub at USD 230-260 mn. TE cited unmet conditions in the term sheet — some tied to third parties — and said it would keep RDH in a wholly owned subsidiary instead.
Two disposals in one sitting
Cairo Poultry is putting its stake in security services firm Aman on the block, it said in an EGX disclosure (pdf) yesterday, without providing any additional information. The same board meeting also signed off on liquidating Cairo Leasing, the group’s leasing subsidiary.
REMEMBER- The decisions come weeks after the company completed a merger absorbing five poultry subsidiaries at book value, with the Financial Regulatory Authority clearing the disclosure report for trading in the post-merger shares earlier this month.
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