EBRD invests another USD 40 mn in Infinity

DEVELOPMENT FINANCE-

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) invested an additional USD 40 mn in renewables giant Infinity, bringing its total equity commitment to USD 141.5 mn, according to a joint statement(pdf). The fresh funds will support the company’s Infinity Power development of 3 GW of renewable capacity across Africa.

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What they said: “This continued support from the EBRD underlines our shared vision of a sustainable, fast-growth future for Egypt and Africa. Together, we are helping to unlock immense renewable energy potential — delivering projects that create jobs, strengthen energy security and enable long-term economic growth,” Infinity Chairman Mohamed Mansour said.

CAPITAL MARKETS-

Beltone Holding’s subsidiary Beltone Asset Management launched a new investment fund tracking the performance of the low-volatility index EGX35-LV, Beltone Asset Management CEO and Managing Director Khaled Darwish told EnterpriseAM. The new offering — called Beltone-35 — broadens Beltone’s “product suite so that investors with different risk tolerances could find a fit within the same brand,” he added.

Beltone wants the fund to be the “go‑to option for conservative equity investors,” Darwish told us. This includes first-time and novice investors as well as seasoned investors that “are fundamentally risk averse and seek a stable, low-volatility exposure to the market.”

The launch follows its recently introduced EGX100-tracking fund, also known as Beltone Meya Meya, which Darwish says has “become the largest passive fund and best-performing equity fund in Egypt since its launch.” Looking ahead, Beltone Asset Management will launch the Beltone Alpha Fund, which he said will complement its EGX35-tracking fund by “catering to a slightly different investor profile with a much higher risk appetite.”

EDUCATION-

Beltone’s AI hackathon draws 3.5k students from 34 universities: Our friends at Beltone Holding brought together over 3.5k students from 34 universities for the second edition of its nationwide AI hackathon, powered by its data science arm Robin and hosted by the American University in Cairo, according to a statement (pdf). The competition — now one of Egypt’s largest AI innovation challenges — saw participation from more than 1k teams tackling a logistics optimization problem known as the Multi-Warehouse Vehicle Routing Problem.

DEBT WATCH-

Real estate giant SODIC inked a EGP 2.9 bn leasing agreement with EFG Finance’s EFG Corp-Solutions, the developer said in an EGX disclosure (pdf). The agreement will be presented to the company’s ordinary general assembly when it meets next.

DIPLOMACY-

President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met with Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu in Cairo yesterday to discuss strengthening ties between the two sides across several sectors, according to an Ittihadiya statement. Shoigu and his accompanying delegation — which included representatives from nuclear developer Rosatom, which is carrying out our first nuclear power plant — also met with a handful of Egyptian officials to discuss advancing key Russian projects in Egypt.

REAL ESTATE-

Egyptian-Saudi real estate consortium to set up EGP 4 bn mall in New Cairo: Redminds Development and Saudi Arabia-based food trading company Al Warda Group inked a strategic partnership agreement to establish a joint real estate company targeting EGP 20 bn in investments by 2026, the two sides revealed during a press conference. The joint venture is eyeing real estate projects in Egypt and abroad, starting with a mall in New Cairo — called Raq Mall — with EGP 4 bn in investments.