Giza Criminal Court, headed by Judge Mohamed Reda Shawkat, adjourned Monday the consideration of the market manipulation case of which the sons of the ousted president Hosni Mubarak, Alaa and Gamal as well as EFG-Hermes CEO Hassan Heikal face charges alongside 6 other businessmen. The court was adjourned until Saturday 08/12/2012. The defendants got EGP 2,051,028,648 and that they violated laws of capital market and Central Bank of Egypt through buying a controlling stake in Al-Watany Bank of Egypt (AWB) from young investors through closed investment funds and selling them without informing Egypt's stock market. The defendants veiled their identities through business clusters and closed investment funds in Cyprus and some British islands. They bought and sold the shares and then transferred their profits outside the country. Besides, they veiled crucial information about selling the Bank from other shareholders, violating principles of transparency and equality among shareholders. The accused acquired a controlling stake in AWB with the least prices and then gradually acquired 80% of the Bank's shares through investment fund managers, financial portfolios and brokerage companies. Afterwards, they controlled the Bank's board and became representatives of the largest shareholders. They assigned two divisions subordinate to them to promote for selling the Bank by virtue of the agreement signed between them in 27/12/2006, which was not known for other shareholders. Afterwards, they, their partners and the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth defendants got the previously said money which is the price difference between the purchasing price and selling price of these shares. Gamal Mubarak was accused of cooperating with public servants over graft charges as they received EGP 496,628,646 after agreeing on selling AWB to achieve illicit profits for them and their partners by acquiring a controlling stake in the Bank through a company in Cyprus which is contributing in a direct investment company in British Virgin Islands that manages an offshore fund. The defendants acquired a controlling stake in AWB, controlled its board and sold the Bank, violating the regulatory procedures and regulations that obligate disclosing information to the stock market that may affect the price of the shares.
