Egypt's biggest state-owned lender, the National Bank of Egypt (NBE) is studying funding UAE Majid Al-Futtaim's upcoming investments in the country exceeding EGP 3 billion, said NBE vice chairman. Speaking to Amwal Al Ghad on Monday, the Egyptian banking official Mahmoud Montasser explained that NBE is keen to finance the UAE retail developer's new expansions in the Egyptian market. Majid Al-Futtaim is one of the leading successful models of investments in Egypt, and NBE had formerly arranged a loan at value of EGP 3 billion to fund MAF's Mall of Egypt project, Montasser noted. Meanwhile, Abdallah El Nockrashy - Majid Al Futtaim Properties Country Head for Egypt - said in an earlier statement: "Majid Al Futtaim is committed to maintaining and expanding its business in Egypt, especially that we believe that the market is ready for more investment. We are optimistically looking forward to further growth – growth we believe will yield beneficial results not only to our business, but to the economy at large," "Egypt is undergoing a great transformation that promises a new age of prosperity. As such we're keen to actively take part in this process through establishing a project that will create thousands of direct and indirect job opportunities, as well as, encourage current players in the retail industry to expand their businesses and open new opportunities." Majid Al Futtaim Holding plans to open the Mall of Egypt worth a total investment of EGP 4.9 billion in 2016. The mall will be located in 6th of October city on Al-Wahat Road. The mall will be constructed over 165,000 sqm, MAF has invested EGP 250 million in road works to provide traffic solutions for the roads surrounding the site to facilitate traffic flow in the area and allow visitors direct and safe access/egress from Al-Wahat Road. Majid Al Futtaim said it has subcontracted 9,000 engineers and workers, from both international and Egyptian companies, to complete the construction. "Majid Al-Futtaim has been operating in Egypt for more than 12 years, providing Egyptians with dynamic retail experiences from Cairo to Alexandria as well as other governorates," said Alain Bejjani, Chief Corporate Development and Brand officer at Majid Al-Futtaim Holding last October.
