Egypt central bank’s exit from United Bank delayed on hopes for bigger return

Egyptian central bank’s plans to exit from the United Bank, in which it holds a 99 percent stake, could be delayed to be next year, sources told Amwal Al Ghad on Tuesday.

Senior sources have said the central bank seeks to improve the amount of returns expected from selling the United Bank by next year when the latter is sought to announce good business results.

The United Bank was formed out of the merger of three failing banks which the central bank acquired in 2006.

“We are in the process of getting rid of it. We are not supposed to own the United Bank, we just bought it for a specific purpose, to fix it. Now that the reform process has started we will float it,” central bank governor Tarek Amer said talking about the United Bank in an earlier statement last February.

It will increase the investors’ appetite when the United Bank would post its targeted 100 percent growth in its 2017 net profit when announced next year, the sources added.

United Bank made an 80 percent growth in net profit during 2016.