Good afternoon folks, and welcome to your final PM edition for this calendar year. We have all the latest for you today on the Central Bank of Egypt’s decision to extend Instapay transfer fee exemptions through March, Eni’s postponement of planned drilling operations, and the secret behind Reddit’s recent stock market success.

THE BIG STORY TODAY

#1- No Instapay transfer fees for the first three months of 2025: The Central Bank of Egypt has announced that it will be extending Instapay transfer fee exemptions for individuals for three months effective 1 January, with the policy subject to possible renewal at the end of the period, according to a press release (pdf).

#2- Increased drilling operations in Zohr postponed: Italian energy giant Eni has pushed back plans to ramp up its drilling operations in the Zohr gas field beginning this month, an anonymous government official told Asharq Business. The planned production increase of 220 mn cubic feet of gas per day will now come in May 2025.

Why the delay? While Eni attributed the setback to unstable weather this winter, the official noted that Eni had delayed restarting drilling operations a number of times after its request to export gas through Damietta’s liquefaction plant was refused, with the source citing a desire to preserve the field’s production for the local market as a driving factor.

REMEMBER- Earlier this year, Eni announced that it would be drilling two new wells in its Zohr field shortly after the government cleared up USD 1.3 bn in arrears owed to foreign energy companies.

#3- FRA greenlights Beltone capital increase: The Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) approved Beltone Holding’s request to raise its capital by EGP 10.75 bn, according to an EGX disclosure (pdf). The company will now convene an extraordinary general assembly meeting to sign off on the capital increase. The move, which Beltone first announced last week, follows an EGP 10 bn capital increase last year.

CORRECTION- In Sunday’s issue of EnterpriseAM Egypt, we cited a research note by Al Ahly Pharos stating that Egypt’s external obligations in 2026 are estimated to sit at USD 55 bn. The investment bank’s actual estimate for Egypt is to pay USD 55 bn in total between 2025 and the end of 2026. The story has been corrected on our website.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD

It’s another quiet day in international news, with most of the global press powered down as the year comes to a close. Alongside headlines still dominated by South Korea’s horrific Jeju Air crash and the passing of former US president Jimmy Carter, Reuters reports that South Korean investigators are seeking an arrest warrant for suspended South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol after his brief imposition of martial law earlier this month. If a court signs off on the warrant, Yoon — who has failed to respond to summons by the country’s police and corruption investigations office — would become the first incumbent president to face arrest in the country’s history.

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

• As 2025 approaches, Egypt is set to attract bns in foreign direct investment, with a focus on key sectors including automotive, textiles, steel, renewables, green ammonia and fertilizers. Throughout 2024, the country secured commitments from companies and investors across the globe promising to pump funds into various industries — GCC nations were among the top investors in the Egyptian economy.
• Another year where IPOs were few and far in between: We rang in 2024 with the expectations that three companies would IPO throughout the year — but the EGX witnessed only two IPOs in 2024.
• A new EGP 30 bn initiative for local manufacturers: The industry and finance ministries have announced the launch of the first phase of a new EGP 30 bn initiative to support companies in priority industrial sectors.

☀️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Temperatures remain stable tomorrow with a high of 19°C in the capital but a chilling low of 9°C at night. We’re also seeing a 25% chance of precipitation, according to our favorite weather app.