Egypt’s Qalaa Holdings Q1 Revenues Grow by 14%

Egypt’s Qalaa Holdings (formerly Citadel Capital), reported 14 percent increase in first quarter revenues to 1.366 billion Egyptian pounds (around US$191 million), compared with “pro-forma” revenues of 1.2 billion pounds in the same period a year earlier.

However, Qalaa Holdings (CCAP.CA on EGX), widened its first quarter net loss by 7 percent to 231.9 million Egyptian pounds (US$32.43 million) compared to the same period a year earlier.

“Net losses for the first quarter dipped seven percent year on year to reach 231.9 million pounds due to increased charges related to discontinued operations at portfolio companies including ESACO (ASEC Holding), El-Aguizy, Elmisrieen, Enjoy, Mom’s Foods and certain non-core companies,” the firm said in a statement.

Qalaa Holdings has transformed from a private equity firm to an investment holding structure and its results for the first quarter of 2013 have been re-stated to reflect the impact of asset purchases under the transformation program.

The firm completed a rights issue in April which raised its total paid-in capital to 8 billion pounds. This allowed it to take majority stakes in most of its core industry subsidiaries including in the energy, cement, agri-foods, transportation and logistics sectors.

As a result it now fully consolidates results from its various businesses, rather than using the equity method of previous years.

As part of the firm’s efforts to shed non-core assets, it exited its full majority stake in the Sudanese Egyptian Bank in a $22 million sale to the Islamic Solidarity Bank of Sudan.