Good afternoon friends and happy hump day. Broadly speaking, the final day of the presidential election is still taking center stage as we reach this week’s midway point.
THE BIG STORIES TODAY
A trio of loans from the EBRD: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing two separate loans to aiBank worth a combined USD 35 mn, and is beginning to disburse a USD 50 mn loan to Elsewedy Electric subsidiary United Metals Company, the bank said in multiple statements.
The breakdown: aiBank will receive a USD 25 mn senior unsecured loan for green on-lending to households and MSMEs for “their investments in climate change adaptation and mitigation projects in a gender-responsive way,” as well as a USD 10 mn senior unsecured loan for on-lending to MSMEs in the agribusiness sector. United Metals Company will use its USD 50 mn loan to finance its working capital.
Voting in the presidential elections ends tonight. Egypt will continue to cast their ballots in the polling stations until 9pm this evening. Candidates for the presidency are: Incumbent President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, Al Wafd Party’s Abdel Sanad Yamama, the Egyptian Social Democratic Party’s Farid Zahran, and the Republican People Party’s Hazem Omar.
Want to get out and vote? Find your nearest polling station by entering your national ID number on the National Elections Authority website. You can also text your national ID number to 5151 or call the same number to find your polling station and receive your voting number.
THE BIG STORY ABROAD
COP28's turbulent end led the conversation in the international press today. The initial draft text released on Monday drew widespread criticism for no defined plan to phase out fossil fuels, the biggest contributing factor to climate change. Instead, eight suggestions were made such as “reducing both consumption and production of fossil fuels, in a just, orderly and equitable manner so as to achieve net zero by, before, or around 2050,” but there was no mention of actually phasing out coal, oil, and gas within the decade which scientists warn must be done. One silver lining, however, is that this was the first time reducing “fossil fuels” has ever been mentioned in a UN climate summit. Now negotiators are scrambling to complete a new draft by the summit’s end.(CNBC | Reuters)
Read more about it in Enterprise Climate.
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WHO YOU ARE- We're looking for gifted storytellers with a minimum of four years of work experience in investor relations, finance, banking, economics, or a related field to develop cutting-edge products and maintain relationships with a portfolio of clients. Candidates should have a bachelor's degree or higher in finance, accounting, economics, business administration, or a related discipline. We're looking for someone whose passion for storytelling is matched with strong analytical and problem-solving skills, as well as the ability to interpret and present financial data — with a keen eye for details and accuracy.
INTERESTED IN APPLYING? To apply for the position, drop us a line at jobs@enterprisemea.com and mention “Enterprise Advisory” in your subject line. Please send a solid cover letter telling us a bit about who you are and why you’re a good fit for our team. We want to see your CV, but the most important thing is a cover letter that makes us want to pick up the phone and give you a call.
** CATCH UP QUICK on the top stories from today’s EnterpriseAM:
- The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) is gearing up for new sales of state-owned companies in 1Q 2024, SFE chief Ayman Soliman said.
- We have it in writing: Private-sector workers on the minimum wage will get a salary bump from the beginning of 2024.
- The Madbouly government has turned to its strategic sugar reserves in a bid to put a lid on soaring prices.The Supply Ministry will dump 240k tonnes into the market this month to fill the supply gap to reduce the volatility, which has continued despite a raft of measures put in place by the government to restore calm.
HELP GAZA-
Want to support relief efforts in Gaza, but don’t know how? We’ve got you. More than 1 mn people in Gaza have been thrown from their homes and every human being there lacks access to food, water, and fuel amid the most intense bombardment any population has endured this century.
The folks at Talabat are processing donations for a range of Gaza relief appeals by charities including the Egyptian Food Bank and Misr El Kheir. Pay in EGP using your credit card.
Or check out our list of charities to which you can make direct donations via bank deposit and / or Fawry.
⛅ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Expect an overcast day with the mercury rising to 21°C and dropping to a cool 14°C in the evening, tells us our favorite weather app.





