Good morning, wonderful people. Leading today’s issue is the pharma rush in the EGX, where retail momentum has turned the sector into a high-volatility playground, spearheaded by GSK Egypt’s 670% surge in under six weeks. Despite the company issuing three successive disclosures denying any material developments, buyers are piling in.

Also expanding: CIRA Education is charting an EGP 2 bn expansion over the next two years as it transitions into an integrated human-capital platform spanning classroom instruction, vocational training, and healthcare.

PLUS: Fintech player E-finance is eyeing a full acquisition of Tamweely, which could cost as much as EGP 5 bn. This would be the largest splash in Egypt’s active MSME scene in 2026 so far.

MEANWHILE- The government is considering a 5% customs tariff on fully imported EVs for the first time to shield local assemblers from a persistent tariff distortion.

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Closing legacy tabs

The Finance Ministry is allocating EGP 6 bn for the third cash-payment batch covering export-subsidy arrears on shipments made before 1 July 2024, the ministry said in a statement. Exporters can apply for the batch from 16 August through 1 October, with payments scheduled for 22 October.

The backlog math: The EGP 6 bn allocation sits within the government’s broader EGP 60 bn settlement mechanism designed to restructure all outstanding export dues on pre-July 2024 shipments. Under the framework, EGP 30 bn of the total liabilities is scheduled to be paid in cash installments over four fiscal years, while the other half will be offset against tax, customs, and utility liabilities.

DATA POINT- While the ministry’s announcement did not specify total progress under the EGP 60 bn clearance program, it says it has already cleared EGP 12.6 bn of the EGP 30 bn cash portion. This liquidity was disbursed during FY 2025/26 to some 2.5k companies across the first and second batches of the initiative. To clear all remaining legacy arrears, the government paid exporters EGP 80 bn over the past six years, and it aims to clear the remainder in two years.

The current framework is intended to prevent another backlog. The EGP 45 bn FY 2025/26 program committed to paying exporters within 90 days, while the FY 2026/27 budget earmarks EGP 48 bn for export support. The statement points to an actual support disbursement of EGP 28 bn last fiscal year, up 55% y-o-y. The statement does not clarify whether the EGP 6 bn arrears batch will be funded under the EGP 48 bn allocation.

Fresh data, fresh sukuk

We have fresh details on the government’s new tax-backed sukuk. The Finance Ministry will issue the governing rules within three weeks, setting maturities between three months and one year to align with taxpayers’ working-capital cycles, a government official tells EnterpriseAM. The first issuance is expected as soon as the framework is finalized.

They won’t be limited to corporates. Individual taxpayers, private companies, and public-sector businesses will all be eligible to participate. That adds a key dynamic to the mechanism we reported yesterday, expanding the reach beyond highly liquid corporate balance sheets.

Nor will they trade like ordinary government debt: Holders cannot sell or transfer the sukuk to another investor, but they can use them before maturity to settle an outstanding tax liability. Alternatively, investors can hold the instruments until maturity to collect their fixed, tax-exempt yield.

IN CONTEXT- The government is looking for cheaper ways to bridge an EGP 4 tn funding gap by preparing to activate a dormant 2005 tax provision allowing taxpayers to buy sovereign yield-bearing certificates to clear future tax liabilities. The move is designed to offer a tax-exempt alternative to T-bills, sparing taxpayers from delay penalties.

Rolling gold rush

Bidding on 42 gold, associated-mineral, and phosphate exploration blocks will close over the next two days, according to an official document seen by EnterpriseAM. The Mineral Resources and Mining Industries Authority (MRMIA) closed bidding on 17 blocks yesterday and will close another 11 today, and the final 14 blocks tomorrow.

Why it matters: This is the first real-world transaction test of the government’s newly minted rolling exploration system launched in June, which dismantled the old, highly bureaucratic single-deadline tender format in favor of a rolling application window where placing an initial bid on a block triggers an automatic 30-day competitive counter-offer period before closing.

The targets: The government is targeting 40 companies operating across gold, silver, and other mineral resources, up from 13 currently, an MRMIA official tells us. The government also wants that exploration to translate into output, eyeing 557k oz of gold this FY (vs. 531.1k estimated last FY) and 90k oz of silver (vs. 85k oz). It also targets USD 840 mn in private mining investment, part of a plan to lift mining’s GDP share from under 1% to 5-6% by 2030.

IN CONTEXT- The UK’s Capital Limited is seeking nine gold blocks from the government’s separate 260-area gold concession map as MRMIA puts more exploration ground in front of international miners. That new exploration push is supported by the country’s first comprehensive airborne mineral survey in 42 years, which is due to wrap by end-2027 and feed better geological data into future offerings.

Maritime fatalities rise

A small cargo ship identified by Reuters as Egyptian owned was attacked by Yemen’s Houthi militants in the Bab Al Mandab strait, according to the Yemeni Coast Guard Authority. Six crewmembers were reportedly killed and 11 injured, BBC reports. The ship’s crew comprised Pakistani and Indonesian nationals, the Yemeni authority said. The Houthis — who declared a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia late last month — have not claimed responsibility for the strike.

Data point

USD 25.3 bn — that’s how much Egypt has drawn from the IMF since 2016, former finance minister and current IMF Executive Director Mohamed Maait said in comments to the press. Of that total, Egypt has repaid USD 16 bn in principal by the end of June 2026. That left the country with less than USD 9.3 bn in outstanding IMF principal at the time, excluding interest payments, which Maait says Egypt has met in full and on schedule.

The end-June cutoff matters: The sub-USD 9.3 bn balance predates the latest USD 1.8 bn disbursement, which landed in the state coffers last week. It, therefore, serves as a snapshot of Egypt’s IMF principal at the end of June rather than its outstanding balance today.

Why was the latest payout larger than expected? Egypt received about USD 1.78 bn, up from the rounded USD 1.64 bn previously anticipated, after completing an additional reform measure under the RSF, Maait said. That raised the RSF component of the payout to USD 277 mn from USD 138 mn.

A decade-long story: Egypt received USD 12 bn under its first IMF-backed reform program, launched in November 2016. The Fund later provided USD 2.8 bn in emergency financing and a USD 5.2 bn one-year facility during the pandemic. The current program was initially approved at USD 3 bn in 2022 before being expanded to USD 8 bn in March 2024, alongside a separate USD 1.3 bn Resilience and Sustainability Facility.

Destination Sahel Issue III drops this week, and we’re diving into how the North Coast is adapting to a changing market.

Developers are recalibrating as buyer behavior shifts, luxury retail is carving out a bigger piece of Sahel’s economy, and the wellness and sports scene has become a summer destination on its own.

In this issue, we get into what’s actually changing on the ground, from how developers are adjusting their pitch to where to shop and how to stay active this season.

Coming straight to your inbox today.

PSA-

WEATHER- Another hot-as-usual summer day in Cairo today, with a high of 40°C and a low of 27°C, according to our favorite weather app.

It’s much nicer in Alexandria, with a high of 33°C and a low of 25°C.

The big story abroad

As the principal players in the regional war harden their stances, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has said that the US and Iran are nearing an agreement over the Strait of Hormuz. “Things are shaping up in favor of peace,” Asif said, without elaborating. Meanwhile, US forces fired on a Panama-flagged vessel transiting the Gulf of Oman, which US Central Command said was violating the blockade on Iran.

All the worse for Panama: The turmoil in Hormuz has resulted in a 16-fold price jump for transiting the Panama Canal this month, with daily auctions averaging about USD 1 mn. A warming of surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean — known as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation — has also contributed to steeper transit costs, as the phenomenon coincides with lower water levels.

And in the AI world: US-based VC firm Accel has raised USD 3.5 bn to back emerging AI startups across the world, which will be deployed via four dedicated funds. A USD 1.35 bn global fund will target large early-stage rounds, with the remaining capital split by region — USD 800 mn for Silicon Valley, USD 800 mn for Europe and Israel, and USD 550 mn for India.

Paramount mulls Hollywood exit as Warner Bros. merger stalls: Paramount CEO David Ellison reportedly threatened to move the company out of California to pressure the state’s attorney general, who is suing to block the Warner Bros. merger. California Attorney General Rob Bonta called the bid an attempt to blackmail regulators into not resisting the transaction, a USD 110 bn buyout backed by Gulf sovereign wealth funds.

*** It’s Hardhat day — your weekly briefing of all things infrastructure in Egypt: EnterpriseAM’s industry vertical focuses each Wednesday on infrastructure, covering everything from energy, water, transportation, and urban development, as well as social infrastructure such as health and education.

In today’s issue: We dig deep into Egypt’s shift away from sovereign backing for desalination, with a push for developers to finance plants themselves through free land and take-or-pay contracts.