MNT-Halan launches the region’s only live IPO as the Gulf pipeline stays frozen

The region finally has an IPO to watch. MNT Tech Holding for Financial Investments, the Egyptian arm of fintech group MNT-Halan, will list on the Egyptian Exchange (EGX), according to an intention-to-float notice seen by EnterpriseAM. Parent MNT Investments B.V. will sell 320 mn shares, a 20% stake, to institutional and retail investors. Trading is expected before the end of October, pending regulatory approvals.

It's the only IPO currently in market anywhere in the region. Investment bankers are still talking up a busier end to the year, but so far the action has been in Cairo, not the Gulf. Across the GCC, Dubai Holding, Emirates Global Aluminium, and Binghatti have all delayed or shelved listings this year; Al Habtoor dropped its DFM plans entirely; and Airtel Money is taking its IPO to London instead of the UAE, citing regional unrest. The region closed 1Q 2026 with just four IPOs raising a combined USD 296.6 mn — the weakest first quarter since 2018, but the slowdown started before the war. Analysts told us that stretched valuations and weak post-IPO performance had already cooled the market before the first strikes.

This is also set to be one of the largest IPOs Egypt has seen in years, and bankers are wagering it can do what no recent Egyptian listing has: pull foreign institutional money back into the market. Interest has been high across in-person and virtual roadshows in the UK, the GCC, the US, and beyond, as we’ve previously reported. MNT’s bankers were pitching investors on a valuation of up to USD 1 bn for the Egypt arm alone when they began testing the waters in June.

Why it matters: Foreigners have been net sellers of EGX equities all year. Strong international appetite for MNT could see investors stick around in the market long enough that they’ll look at other would-be issuers in the EGX’s IPO pipeline. Among them: the hotly anticipated offering of Banque du Caire as well as Misr Life Ins.

Bankers are pushing to get MNT over the finish line quickly, with trading expected to begin before the end of this month provided all regulatory approvals come through. The ITF gave no price range. The offer price will be set through a book-build based on investor demand.

What's on offer

The offering is fully secondary, but fresh capital still goes in. The 320 mn shares come entirely from the parent, giving a 20% freefloat out of 1.6 bn shares. After the listing, the parent will subscribe to a capital increase of up to EGP 4 bn in new shares at the offer price, so the new capital comes from the parent rather than from public investors. No price range has been set; the offer price will be determined through a book-build.

Only the Egyptian business is going public. The corporate parent — which also owns arms in Pakistan, Turkey, and the UAE — is staying private. None of those operations are part of the listing. That matters for anyone pricing off the group’s headline number: the parent reported a USD 1.4 bn valuation in June on the first close of a round led by Al Ahly Capital, the first time a commercial bank has taken equity in the business.

The pitch: MNT holds 24.3% of Egypt’s non-bank microfinance market by loan book value and 14% of the non-bank consumer finance market by annual disbursements, while ranking as the country’s largest non-bank SME lender by loan book, by its own count. The estimates are based on FRA market data as of end-2025. For foreign funds, MNT would offer one of very few listed routes into consumer credit in a market of some 109 mn people.

WHAT’S NEXT- MNT is seeking the FRA and EGX approvals it needs for the offering, which it expects to complete during October, subject to market conditions, according to the notice. Once approved, retail investors will subscribe on the basis of a public subscription notice reviewed by the FRA, while institutions get an international offering circular.

What to watch: Whether cornerstone investors are named, and whether any of them come from the Gulf.

ADVISORS- Our friends EFG Hermes are joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners along with Citi. Gibson Dunn & Crutcher (US and English law) and Matouk Bassiouny & Hennawy (Egyptian law) are advising MNT-Halan and the selling shareholder. White & Case (US and English law) and MHR & Partners in association with White & Case (Egyptian law) are counsel to the bookrunners. KPMG Hazem Hassan is the auditor, while BDO Keys Financial Consulting is the independent financial advisor.

MARKETS THIS MORNING-

Asian markets are mostly in the red in early trading, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng down 2.5% as it returns from a holiday, South Korea's Kospi off 1.0%, and Japan's Nikkei down 0.9% after a strong session on Thursday. US futures are edging up ahead of today's September jobs report, which is expected to show 84k new jobs and unemployment holding at 4.1%. Traders see a 72% chance the Fed stays on hold this month.

THE CLOSING BELL-

The DFM fell 0.5% yesterday on turnover of AED 659.9 mn. The index is down 1.9% YTD.

In the green: Watania International Holding (+2.5%), Salik Company (+1.9%), and Commercial Bank of Dubai (+1.2%).

In the red: Dubai Refreshment Company (-5.0%), Al Mazaya Holding Company (-4.9%), and Dubai Taxi Company (-2.6%).

Over on the ADX, the index fell 0.7% on turnover of AED 1.1 bn. Meanwhile, Nasdaq Dubai was down 1.2%.