Egypt plans to sell stake in the state company behind its new capital city, Administrative Capital for Urban Development (ACUD) on the country's stock exchange within two years, expected to be the North African nation's biggest-ever initial public offering (IPO), the company's head said on Tuesday. ACUD is a joint venture between the military and the Egyptian Ministry of Housing created to oversee the multi-billion dollar project. The company is studying the IPO with a number of advisers, including CI Capital, said Ahmed Zaki Abdeen. "We are planning to launch some subsidiaries specialised in areas of electricity, water, gas, and buildings. This will be followed by selling some of their shares in the stock exchange," Abdeen added. "The company is very keen on the IPO plan so as to secure finances for developing the third and fourth stages of the new capital," In August last year, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced plans to list ACUD on the stock exchange within two years. "We are talking about raising some 100 billion Egyptian pounds ($6.3 billion). The Company's assets are estimated at between 3 and 4 trillion pounds," Sisi added during the opening of a number of residential projects. Egypt's new administrative capital is a three-phase project covering an area of 700 square km east of Cairo. It aims to transform the desert into a modern urban hub of government buildings, embassies, and leading companies.
