Noozz After nearly four years of bargaining between the United Arab Emirates' Amlak Finance Company and the Egyptian Mortgage Finance Authority, the company has decided to launch an operation in Egypt. The move comes as part of Amlak's regional expansion strategy following the company's decision that mortgage finance in Egypt is compliant with Islamic Sharia principles. Shafik Gabr, chairman of Emaar Properties in Egypt, said Amlak Finance, which is majority owned by Emaar, is a leading financial institution that will finance purchases of Emaar Egypt projects. A senior official at the Egyptian Mortgage Finance Authority said on condition of anonymity that the UAE company had concluded that Egypt's mortgage system was compliant with the Islamic Sharia. "Negotiations are currently dealing with issues such as rates and contract terms, he added. The Egyptian market has two mortgage lenders, Taamir and the Egyptian Housing Finance Company, with paid-up capitals of LE 287.5 million and LE 50 million respectively. In addition, local banks provide mortgage loans under regulations from the Central Bank of Egypt.
