الهيئة العامة للرقابة المالية

• Key government officials, such as the Ministers of Finance, Planning, Investment, Foreign Trade, and Parliamentary Affairs, along with representatives from the Central Bank and other relevant authorities, attended this high-level meeting.
• The draft law aims to provide a clear framework for state ownership in companies, whether wholly or partially owned by the government.

Dr. Farid- FRA Chairman:

• We believe that expanding the investor base of state-owned companies through stock market listings is a vital tool for improving their transparency and governance once publicly traded.

Dr. Mohamed Farid, FRA Chairman recently attended a key meeting with the House of Representatives’ Economic Affairs Committee. The session also drew the presence of several prominent government officials: Dr. Rania Al-Mashat, Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation; Counselor Mahmoud Fawzy, Minister of Parliamentary and Legal Affairs and Political Communication; Ahmed Kouchouk; and Engineer Hassan El-Khatib, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade.

The meeting’s primary focus was to deliberate on the government’s proposed draft law. This legislation aims to regulate specific provisions concerning state ownership in companies, Including both wholly owned and partially owned companies by the state.

Dr. Farid highlighted that the joint attendance of four government ministers and FRA Chairman at the discussion underscored significant ministerial coordination on the state ownership policy document. He emphasized that expanding the ownership base of state-owned companies through the stock market is a critical mechanism for achieving the document’s core objectives. These objectives include boosting the private sector’s involvement in economic activity and significantly enhancing transparency and governance standards in the management of both fully and partially state-owned companies.

During the meeting, which involved extensive discussions among the Economic Committee members and representatives from other committees, Dr. Farid highlighted the stock market’s significant revival and activity. This surge, he noted, followed major government IPOs in the early 1990s and from 2004 onwards, referencing successful offerings like those for Telecom Egypt, Amoc, and Sidi Kerir. He explained that these listings garnered substantial investor interest due to confidence in publicly offered state-owned companies, which in turn incentivized the private sector to pursue similar listings.

He further emphasized that expanding the ownership base of state-owned companies through disciplined processes would attract new investors, boosting liquidity, trading volumes and market capitalization. This strategy would also draw in foreign investments, thereby increasing the stock market’s depth and competitiveness, and ultimately improving Egypt’s standing in global indices. These positive outcomes would be complemented by enhanced financial, operational and profitability indicators as well as improved governance within these companies post-listing.