An unnamed Emirati investor is reportedly in preliminary talks to acquire 100% of Egyptian state-owned ins. provider Misr Life Ins., Al Borsa reports, citing unnamed sources it says have knowledge of the matter.

IN CONTEXT- Misr Life ins., a subsidiary of Misr Ins. Holding (MIH) is part of Egypt’s state privatization program, where it’s set to list 25% of its shares on the EGX by the first half of 2024. The company’s ownership was transferred to the Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) earlier this year, and was added to the SFE’s pre-IPO fund, which looks to bring strategics onboard to invest and help restructure state-owned firms before they go up for a public offering on the EGX.

SFE is mulling its options: The sovereign fund is considering the Emirati investor’s offer, but reportedly prefers to move forward with listing MIH on the Egyptian bourse, Al Borsa quotes its sources as saying.

About MIH: The company holds six subsidiaries other than Misr Ins. and Misr Life Ins., according to its website. They include two mutual guarantee or sharia-compliant ins. firms — Misr Takaful Ins. and Misr Takaful Life Ins — in partnership with the National Bank of Egypt; a real estate firm; a real estate and tourism investment company; an asset management subsidiary; and a financial services firm.

The UAE has put its head in Egypt’s privatization game recently:Global InvestmentHolding (GIH) purchased 669 mn shares from Egypt’s state-owned tobacco manufacturer Eastern Company majority shareholder for EGP 24.52 apiece, totaling EGP 16.4 bn (USD 532 mn), the Egyptian Public Enterprises Ministry said in a statement (pdf) last week. The transaction will make GIH the company’s single-largest shareholder.

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