Egypt and a number of the country's lenders have signed loan agreements with the European Investment Bank (EIB) worth €740mn on Sunday. The agreements aim to facilitate more SME lending, and the development of the Port of Safaga, part of the Golden Triangle project, a mega project initiated by President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi and located between Qena, Safaga, and Al-Qusayr, an area that makes up 75% of Egypt’s mining minerals.
Kenya has raised US$302mn from the domestic market through the sale of 15-year treasury bonds to help fund the development of various infrastructure projects in transportation, energy and water.
The Central Bank of Qatar has issued a series of sukuk valued cumulatively at QAR1.5bn with maturities ranging from 3 years to 10 years on behalf of the country's government.
The Government of Cameroon plans to disburseFCfa4bn to finance the construction of a motorway between the city of Kribi and the town of Lolablé, it said this week.
New Development Bank CEO KV Kamath has called for the development of an emerging market rating model that can better account for political risk in these markets, according to a recent interview with CNBC. The bank is currently in the process of setting up a rating agency that specialises in BRICS countries.
National Bank of Abu Dhabi and First Gulf Bank are likely to secure final shareholder approval of their merger following a meeting scheduled for 7 December, according to a statement published on the UAE bourse. The merger of NBAD and FGB will create the region's largest bank.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Export Development Canada (EDC) and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) announced plans to co-finance the development of a €769.6mn high-tech hospital in İzmir, Turkey. The İzmir Bayraklı hospital will be designed, built, equipped and managed by developer İzmir Bayraklı Hastane Yatirim Ve Sağlık Hizmetleri A.Ş., a joint venture between GE, GAMA Holding A.Ş. and Türkerler İnşaat. The funding package will see the EBRD offer €298.6mn in A/B loan structure, with €85mn for the bank’s own account and €213.6mn of syndicated funds to UniCredit, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and Intesa Sanpaolo. OPIC and EDC are providing parallel financing of US$250mn and €65mn respectively.