Rania A. Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation, and Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the National Investment Bank (NIB), met with the leadership of NI Capital and NI Consultations, NIB subsidiaries, to discuss their role in promoting public-private partnerships and driving economic growth. Al-Mashat emphasised NI Capital's critical role in supporting the government's vision for fostering economic growth by developing non-banking financial services, encouraging investments in traded securities and direct investments, and maximising returns on state-owned assets. "NI Capital represents a leading example of the bank's investments," said Mohamed Negm, NIB Deputy Chairperson, stressing the importance of the company's role in maximising returns on the bank's investments and fostering partnerships with both local and foreign private sectors. Mohamed Metwally, CEO and Managing Director of NI Capital, highlighted the company's significant progress since its inception. Assets under management for private sector clients and state-owned enterprises reached EGP 14.7bn by the end of 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 97% over the past four years. Consolidated revenues reached EGP 329m by the end of the previous year, representing a compound annual growth rate of 72% over the same period. Metwally emphasised that 79% of the company's total revenues in 2023 came from transactions with private sector companies and individuals. The team reviewed the direct investment portfolio managed by NI Capital on behalf of Ayady for Investment and Development, noting investments in 10 companies across various sectors, and managed both full and partial exits from 3 companies over the past three years. They also discussed the performance of the Cash Liquidity Fund and the Equity Fund for investing in listed stocks. NI Capital has also provided financial consulting services to numerous companies in the energy, industrial, and real estate development sectors, acting as an advisor in several primary and secondary offerings on the Egyptian Exchange, including the initial offering of eFinance and secondary offerings for Eastern Tobacco Company, Abu Qir Fertilisers, and Telecom Egypt, with a total value of approximately EGP 13.5bn. In a related meeting, Al-Mashat met with Ahmed Saad, Managing Director of NI Consultations. Saad outlined the company's role in providing consulting services, project management, capacity building and training, data analysis, and institutional development for both the public and private sectors. Al-Mashat also listened to a presentation on the ongoing comprehensive digital transformation project in the bank and the development and automation of the accounting system. Al-Mashat also met with Osama Saleh, Chairperson of Ayady for Investment and Development. During the meeting, Al-Mashat emphasised the role played by Ayady for Investment and Development in enhancing the partnership between the public and private sectors, and injecting investments into a number of priority sectors. She also explained that the Ministry works on stimulating the private sector through a number of programs, projects and policies, as well as working on the governance of investment spending to achieve the government's priorities and allow more space for the private sector to lead development efforts. Al-Mashat pointed out that the Ministry launched the Hub for Advisory, Finance and Investments for Enterprises; a comprehensive platform offering various financial and non-financial services, technical support, and consultations provided by international partners to private sector companies, whether large, small, medium, or emerging companies. During the meeting, Saleh reviewed the company's investment portfolio, which is 75% owned by the NIB. He explained that since its founding in 2015, the company has succeeded in pumping key investments in many sectors and establishing a group of companies in which the private sector has a majority stake in the non-bank finance sectors and others, in addition to the success of these companies in attracting foreign investments and contributions from international financial institutions. He added that the authorised capital of Ayady for Investment and Development is EGP 3bn, while the paid-up capital is EGP 770m. The company's investments contributed to the creation of 604,000 job opportunities, in addition to providing financing opportunities for about 440,000 individuals, including 246,500 men and 194,000 women, which reinforces the company's efforts in the field of financial inclusion. Ayady for Investment and Development invests in a number of sectors such as the non-banking financial sector, the electronic payments sector, the media sector, the health services sector, and the development sector. It achieved a return on capital paid more than 3.2 times, by investing in 10 companies, the most important of which include: ElGameya, One Finance, Tamweely for Micro-Finance, Enmaa Finance Company, Delta Misr For Payments Company (Sahl), Ergo Media Ventures, Film Clinic, Future Healthcare, and Ayady for Urban Development Company.
