Breaches galore

1

WHAT WE’RE TRACKING TONIGHT

THIS EVENING: PMI contraction softens, but business confidence hits historic lows

Good afternoon, friends and happy (busy) hump day. We have a brisk news flow todayas we hit the midpoint of the week.

THE BIG STORIES TODAY

#1-Egypt’s non-oil private sector business activity contracted at a softer pace in November but business confidence plummeted to historic lows on the back of elevated inflation, according to S&P Global’s latest purchasing managers’ index (pdf) out this morning. The country’s PMI rose to 48.4 from 47.9 in October, yet this is still below the 50.0 mark that separates growth from contraction, making November the 36th consecutive month that business activity has been in decline.

Confidence is at series low: Egypt’s non-oil activity outlook for the next year has dropped to its worst since at least April 2012, when S&P Global began collecting data. The expectations of non-oil companies in most sectors were “only slightly positive,” while those operating in manufacturing and construction were pessimistic overall.

#2- Palm Hills to host The Ritz: Real estate developer Palm Hills Development (PHD) and hotel brand Marriott will set up an EGP 4 bn luxury hotel in west Cairo — Ritz-Carlton Palm Hills — under an agreement inked between the two sides yesterday, PHD confirmed in a statement today (pdf).

In detail: The hotel will be located in PHD’s Palm Hills October development, and will include 150 rooms and 50 apartments, as well as a number of amenities including restaurants, gyms, and swimming pools. It will create 45k jobs during the construction period and 600 when it’s up and running. The hotel should be fully operational in 2027.

CLARIFICATION- The project was not in the making since 2009 as we mentioned in our AM edition this morning, a PHD representative clarified to us earlier today. The story has been amended on our website.

HAPPENING NOW- Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is currently in Washington, DC for a series of meetings with members of Congress to discuss the country’s strategic relations with the US. Shoukry will be joined by the rest of the Arab-Islamic ministerial delegation later in the weekin a meeting with US State Secretary Antony Blinken to campaign for an end to the war on Gaza.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

Updates on the Israeli-Gaza assault continue to lead the conversation in the international press as Israel continues its attack on Khan Younis, the largest city in the South of Gaza. Meanwhile, hospitals in the area are overrun with the wounded and dead — the main hospital Nasser saw an influx of patients after an attack on a school being used as a shelter — while a communications blackout in the strip prevented humanitarian response overnight. (Washington Post | Reuters | Wall Street Journal)

SOME BUSINESS NEWS- US climate envoy John Kerry singled out Chevron at COP28 as part of his criticism of US oil producers lagging on climate action, reports Bloomberg. The company did not partake in a decarbonization charter, which would mean cutting methane emissions to near-zero and halting flaring of natural gas by 2030, or commit to a fund offering support for rivals in developing countries to curb their own methane emissions. Airbus might need taxpayer backing, says the Financial Times, to launch a single-aisle aircraft and a shorter range hydrogen powered plane as successors to the A320 jet family. With Chinese borrowers defaulting at a record high since the pandemic, ratings agency Moody’s downgraded its outlook on the country from stable to negative but maintained an “A1” long term rating on their sovereign bonds, according to CNBC.

** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:

One isn’t enough: A group of state-owned companies are looking to set up a second plant for producing green fuel in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone).
Elsewedy kept busy at COP28, with its subsidiaries inking a number of agreements on the sidelines of the climate summit, handing out land plots across industrial complexes and agreeing to boost renewables in Indonesia.
It’s another day of violence in Gaza, with Israel intensifying its attacks in both the north and the south.

?️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- The mercury is expected to rise to a high of 27°C during the day and drop to a chilly 17°C in at night, according to our favorite weather app.

More data breaches compromises genetic testing company + GTA is back

Your regularly scheduled reminder to update your passwords: In yet another 2023 data breach, 6.9 mn (50%) of 23andMe customers were victims of a data breach that saw hackers steal their personal data, the genetic testing company said in a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The company initially reported that around 0.1% of its customers were compromised, but spokespeople later confirmed leaked personal information of about 5.5 mn users who opted in to the DNA relatives feature, and an additional 1.4 mn people had their family tree profile information accessed.

The public first caught wind in early October when the company confirmed that hackers had accessed some data due to the reusing of passwords, but refrained from identifying it as a breach.

The hackers weren’t happy: Proving that it was a breach, they posted the alleged data of 1 mn users of Jewish Ashkenzi descent and 10k Chinese users on the dark web, asking for USD 1-10 per account. Two weeks later, 4 mn profiles of “the wealthiest people living in the US and Western Europe” were added to the same hacking forum.

23andMe is now enforcing password resets and two-factor authentication, which was previously optional. (Axios | Verge | TechCrunch)

So, you might want to have a talk with IT about updating your security measures. The recent trend of cybersecurity breaches has severe implications. Targeted users of 23andMe, for example, are now at risk of identity theft.

Here at home, we’ve seen some hacks over the past few weeks: EGX-listed fintech giant Fawry’s testing environment was the victim of an attack last month by LockBit, a sophisticated hacker group, resulting in the compromise of some customers’ personal data. Just a week later, LockBit hacked another Egyptian blue chip, alleging that they “have stolen accounting data, audit data, commercial info, contracts private data … finance data, human resources data” and more.

GO DEEPER- We had a chat with Fawry CEO Ashraf Sabry, who explained to us the nitty gritty of what happened and the steps the company is taking to prevent this from happening again.

Great news for gamers — Grand Theft Auto VI is on the horizon. Over a decade after the debut of Grand Theft Auto V, Rockstar Games was forced to release a trailer (watch here, runtime: 1:30) of Grand Theft Auto VI following leaks on social media. GTA5 was released five times since its launch in 2013, prompting jokes that a newer version would never come to fruition.

There’s still a way to go— the trailer announced that the newest installment is due to release in 2025. The game will be made available for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S consoles, so the PC gamers out there will have a longer wait.

GTA5 is the second best selling game in video game franchise history, having sold 190 mn copies, generating USD 7.7 bn in revenue in the decade since its release, coming in behind Minecraft, with over 300 mn copies sold. The game earned USD 815.7 mn in a single day, and within three days had grossed USD 1 bn. Surprisingly, the video game publisher’s shares fell by 4% after the release of GTA6’s trailer, despite positive reception, possibly due to lack of PC release news.

Gen Z has a spending problem on TikTok. As the prime audience for TikTok and a major driving force behind the app’s popularity, Gen Z users of the app are consistently being influenced into buying products, to the point of putting themselves at financial risk, according to a report by Morning Consult.

Aspirational content on TikTok is scamming Gen Z out of their money. Many influencers on the app post “haul” videos showcasing products that they allege they’ve purchased from specific brands, misrepresenting their spending ability by not reporting brand contracts or sponsorships. This influences how younger generations spend their money, even spurring a popular #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt hashtag, CNBC notes.

Women in their 20s spend more time on the app than men their age:75% of Gen Z women use TikTok, compared to 62% of men of the same generation, making women more susceptible to expenditure and financial risk. LendingTree noted a 99.3% rise in non-mortgage debt among US Gen Zers of both sexes within the span of two years, due to spiked personal loans and credit card debt.

Finally: A comical Black Mirror

? ON THE TUBE TONIGHT-
(all times CLT)

The afterlife of your choosing is just a click away. In Upload (watch trailer, runtime 2:13) people near death can choose to transfer their consciousness into a digital afterlife.

When Nathan Brown, a computer programmer, suffers an automated car accident, he is uploaded to Lakeview, a paradisal second life not for the pure of heart but the big of bank account.

The deceased can still call and talk to their living friends and family, but are stuck in a digital world created and managed by a megacorporation. You can fulfill your every desire in the afterlife… if you can pay for it.

Take Black Mirror and make it funny. Upload is a thinly veiled satire of cruel capitalistic ethics — even death favors the rich. Its bright palette and running jokes (brought to you by Greg Daniels of The Office and Parks and Recreation fame) are just window dressings for the core of the show.

Its realism is what makes it bleak, but also what makes it funny. The idea of a megacorporation like Amazon or Meta offering afterlife VR services isn’t enough of a stretch that we can laugh about it comfortably.

At one point, Nathan visits citizens of Lakeview that only have enough for two monthly gigabytes of data on the server, and have to live with data caps. In-app purchases plaguing us even in the afterlife simply isn’t funny when it isn’t too far off, especially when the show is set only ten years in the future.

Unexpectedly, the show meanders down a mystery plot when Nathan realizes his memories are glitchy. Turns out his work proposed a concept that threatened this megacorp’s afterlife program, so his accidental car accident may have not been an accident at all.

WHERE TO WATCH- You can find Upload on Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime.

The Cairo Symphony Orchestra will host a Christmas concert on Saturday, 23 December at 8pm. You can book your ticket from here.
For Disney fans: The Disney Classics concert will be held at the Opera’s Main Hall on Monday, 25 December. The concert will start at 8pm. Tickets are available here.
Don’t miss the NutCracker ballet shows. The performances will be presented by the Cairo Opera Ballet, along with the Cairo Opera Orchestra. The first show will be held on Tuesday, 26 December, and will continue until Thursday, 30 December. Tickets are available here.
The orchestra will also put on another concert on Sunday, 31 December celebrating New Year’s Eve. Click here to book your ticket.

CHRISTMAS EVENTS-

Get into the Christmas spirit with these festive events all around the capital.

We’re kicking off the season to be jolly with the City of the Lights Christmas Bazaar at Galleria40. The market launched last weekend, but if you missed it, don’t fret. It’ll be up and running next weekend, too.

Bookworms, assemble: AUC’s Christmas Book Fair is running everyday until next Saturday, 9 December. All books are getting a 20% markdown, and the El Kousha Theatre Troupe for Puppets will be performing for the kids on Saturday.

Next weekend is jam-packed with Christmas celebrations. Also taking place on Saturday 9 December is Cairo Jazz Club 610’s Xmas Bazaar collab with Alkemia. 20+ local vendors, live music, good food, gluhwein, and a kid’s area is available to you from 12pm to 8pm.

Want to sit back and enjoy some Christmasy tunes? Arkan Plaza has you covered. Their Christmas Show, put together by Gaby Bishara, will bring you the smooth sounds of Louis Armstrong and Ol’ Blue Eyes himself in a blend of your favorite jazz tunes and classic Christmas tracks. Free up your Wednesday on 22 December to head on over.

The classic Christmas staple The Nutcracker Ballet will be performed at the Cairo Opera House by the Cairo Opera Ballet Company everyday starting 26 December up until the 30th.

FILM-

Zawya cinema will be screening five movies for the late director Ali Badrakhan until Tuesday, 26 December. You can know more about the schedule from here.

Eins Christmas Bazaar is bringing you some handmade goodies, kicking off this past Friday and continuing until Sunday, 1 January, 2024. The bazaar is being held at the Gallery, in Maadi.

THEATER-

Relive the good old days with the Act Theater Group. The group is reintroducing tales of Goha’s (mis)adventures into circulation, alongside other folktales of yore. Adults can bask in nostalgia, and younger ones can connect with their cultural heritage. Register for the shows on 15 and 16 December here.

EVENTS-

A pop-up market is, well, popping up tomorrow in Zamalek. Organized by ThatReallyCoolStudio, the ReallyCoolPopUp bazaar will be donating some proceeds to Palestine.

Award-winning Egyptian author Ashraf El-Ashmawi will be hosting a book signing event for his latest novel Maximum Speed Zero at Bibliothek Egypt on Saturday, 9 December at 5:30pm. The novel follows the journey of an Egyptian family who experience peculiar occurrences and encounter different individuals that influence their destinies.

The monthly Cairo Flea Market is putting up their Christmas decorations next Saturday, at the Zamalek Fish Garden as per usual.

CEO of Future Energy Corporation, Sherife Abdelmessih, will be hosting a book signing event for his latest book Super Vision. The event will be held on Wednesday, 13 December at Bibliothek Egypt.

Spilled Milk is a lotta talk about food with a whole lotta laughs. In each episode, writers/comedians Molly Wizenberg and Mathew Amster-Burton start discussing a food-related topic, and inevitably go off on a mn tangents. One listener classified it as “only 10% food talk and 90% bladder destroying hilarity.”

But they don’t compromise on the facts for humor. As funny as they may be, the hosts know their stuff when it comes to food, and you’ll definitely learn something new if you give the podcast a listen. Whether they’re linking to a recipe, or discussing their passionate opinions on food, you can expect an informative and amusing episode.

Not NSFW or kid-friendly for that matter. So be careful who you play this around, but even if you’re alone, it’ll feel like a chat with friends or a dose of companionship while you do those chores you’ve been putting off.

Not for the OCD-types. Be warned, though, if you tend to go for more matter-of-fact podcasts or don’t enjoy host digressions, this might not be the one for you.

You can listen to the podcast onApplePodcasts or Spotify

What the markets are doing on 5 December, 2023

The EGX30 fell 0.5% at today’s close on turnover of EGP 5.2 bn (71.4% above the 90-day average). Local investors were net sellers. The index is up 72.1% YTD.

In the green: Elsewedy Electric (+3.6%), Oriental Weavers (+3.3%) and Heliopolis Housing (+3.1%).

In the red: GB Corp (-3.8%), Orascom Development Egypt (-3.8%) and B Investments Holding (-2.8%).

Meet our founder of the week, Youssef Galal, co-founder of Klickit

OUR FOUNDER OF THE WEEK-Every Tuesday, Founder of the Week looks at how a successful member of Egypt’s startup community got their big break, asks about their experiences running a business, and gets their advice for budding entrepreneurs. Speaking to us this week is Youssef Galal (LinkedIn), Co-founder of Klickit.

My Name is Youssef Galal, and I’m the co-founder and head of technology at KlickIt. I graduated with a double major in Computer Science and Business Administration from the American University in Cairo (AUC). I co-founded KlickIt in 2017, originally naming it Q-Less, during my senior year at university along with my fellow colleagues Saeed Talaat, Hashim Ibrahim, and Walid Abo ElNour.

That timeline explains why most of my career has been at KlickIt — although I also took on multiple internships during my undergrad studies, the most remarkable of which were in L’Oreal and Emirates NBD in Dubai. I also worked as a full-time engineer for almost two years at Dell Technologies, parallel to my work on KlickIt.

Klickit is a platform that offers a secure and consolidated fee management system for educational institutions. Also, it facilitates a no-hassle payment experience for parents allowing them to pay the school/university/nursery fees digitally using various payment methods such as credit cards, wallets, payment aggregators, POS, etc.

It all started when we were at university and we used to wait in queues for hours to pay our tuition fees, which made us think of creating a platform that would help parents and students pay their tuition fees in a more convenient way. That’s why we decided to build KlickIt.

I gave up an appealing job offer that I received from a big consulting company in the UAE when I graduated from university. I took a risk then, and I chose to invest more time and effort in Klickit, especially as we were in the early stages of launching the platform.

The best part of my job is that it is moving at a fast pace — I witness the real impacts of my ideas and efforts instantly. Also, being a co-founder of a startup gave me wider exposure to different business aspects, since I take on more responsibilities and work with all teams closely. I might not have had this chance if I was working in a larger, systematic corporation.

The worst part of my job is the intense amount of stress that I go through constantly, especially considering our current economic circumstances.

If I could give one piece of advice to someone who is thinking of starting their own business, it would be to always believe in your idea — never lose hope, and stay resilient.

The three most important KPIs that I look at everyday are: The total throughput of the platform, the number of parents that are using the platform, and the number of transactions taking place on the platform. Also, we are always keen to measure the level of satisfaction of our customers through the app rates.

My family has been extremely supportive from the onset, and they always give a hand of help during the hard times. My parents supported me financially in the early stages of Klickit as I did not have a stable salary yet.

I believe that my startup journey was not lonely:I always feel that my co-founders are my second family — we have been together through all the ups and downs since we started.

Klickit’s raised funds with a total of USD 770k. Our main investors were EFG Hermes Finance, Camel Ventures, and an angel investor. We definitely would need another round of investments to help finance our growth plans, especially outside of Egypt.

For the short-term growth plan, we are currently exploring potential expansion in countries across Africa and the GCC. We already launched Klickit in the UAE, where it was operational through the current academic year.

When it comes to long-term growth, we are dreaming of expanding more and having a positive impact in several countries.

If I would exit my business tomorrow, I would do so through an IPO or sell it to a bigger global player.

My down time is filled with sports, which has always been a major part of my life. I have been playing tennis professionally since I was five years old, and I began coaching after I graduated. I also got into coaching padel, so it takes up almost all of my freetime.

Of the businesses killing it out nowadays, I would nominate Breadfast and Rabbit.

If I couldn’t build the business I am building now, I think I would have been doing something related to the sports industry, whether proceeding as a full-time coach, or having a business operating in this field.

THE ENTERPRISE ENTERTAINMENT CALENDAR

DECEMBER

4-26 December (Sunday-Tuesday): Ali Badrakhan’s cinema, Zawya Cinema, Downtown.

4-9 December (Sunday-Saturday): City of the Lights Christmas Bazaar at Galleria40.

4-9 December (Sunday-Saturday): Christmas Book Fair at AUC Tahrir.

4-16 December (Sunday-Saturday): Tutankhamun: The Immersive Exhibition at the Grand Egyptian Museum.

5 December (Tuesday): For Palestine Exhibition at Arkan Plaza.

6 December (Wednesday): ThatReallyCoolPopUp Market For Palestine at ThatReallCoolStudio, Zamalek.

7 December (Thursday): Arab Music Night at Malak Gabr Arts Theatre.

8 December-24 January (Friday-Wednesday): Cairo Art Fair at District 5.

9 December (Saturday): Cairo Flea Market Xmas Edition at the Zamalek Fish Garden.

9 December (Saturday): CJC 610 x Alkemia Xmas Bazaar.

9 December (Saturday): Ashraf El-Ashmawi book signing event, Bibliothek Egypt, Arkan Plaza, Sheikh Zayed.

9 December (Saturday) Komedy Koshk Vol. 14 at Room Art Space.

11-12 December (Monday- Tuesday): Omar Khairat’s concerts, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

14-21 December (Thursday-Thursday): Gouna Film Festival (GFF), Gouna.

15-16 December (Friday-Saturday): Stories of Goha and Folktales of Yore by Act Theatre Group at Tahir Cultural Center.

22 December (Wednesday): The Christmas Show by Gaby Bishara at Theatro Arkan.

22 December (Wednesday): Tamer Ashour Live Concert at Dandy Mall.

23 December (Saturday): The Cairo Symphony Orchestra’s concert, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

25 December (Monday): Disney Classics concert, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

26-30 December (Tuesday-Saturday): NutCracker shows, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

31 December (Sunday): The Cairo Symphony Orchestra New Year’s Eve concert, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

EVENTS WITH NO SET DATE

2023: The inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

Q1 2024: Opening of the newly developed Pyramids Plateau in Giza.

2024

JANUARY

7 January (Sunday): Coptic Christmas.

25 January (Thursday): Revolution Day.

26 January-6 February (Friday-Tuesday): Cairo International Book Fair.

MARCH

11-12 March (Monday-Tuesday): Creative Industry Summit.

APRIL

9 April (Tuesday): Eid El Fitr (TBC).

25 April (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Sinai Liberation Day (TBC).

MAY

1 May (Wednesday): National holiday in observance of Labor Day (TBC).

5 May (Sunday): Coptic Easter.

6 May (Monday): Sham El Nessim (TBC).

JUNE

15-19 June (Saturday-Wednesday): Eid El Adha (TBC).

30 June (Sunday): June 30 Revolution Day (TBC).

JULY

7 July (Sunday): National holiday in observance of Islamic New Year (TBC).

23 July (Tuesday): Revolution Day (TBC).

SEPTEMBER

15 September (Sunday): National holiday in observance of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday (TBC).

OCTOBER

6 October (Sunday): Armed Forces Day.

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THIS EVENING: PMI contraction softens, but business confidence hits historic lows

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More data breaches compromises genetic testing company + GTA is back

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Finally: A comical Black Mirror

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What the markets are doing on 5 December, 2023

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Meet our founder of the week, Youssef Galal, co-founder of Klickit

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Privacy & Support

Get EnterpriseAM daily

Breaches galore

An independent publication supported by

Today at a glance

THIS EVENING: PMI contraction softens, but business confidence hits historic lows

Get Enterprise daily

Related

Related

More data breaches compromises genetic testing company + GTA is back

Related

Related

Finally: A comical Black Mirror

Related

Related

Related

Related

Related

This publication is proudly sponsored by

What the markets are doing on 5 December, 2023

Related

Meet our founder of the week, Youssef Galal, co-founder of Klickit

Related

THE ENTERPRISE ENTERTAINMENT CALENDAR

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