Matouk Bassiouny completes advisory on 56% sale of Egypt’s Beltone to UAE’s Chimera

Cairo-based law firm Matouk Bassiouny & Hennawy (MBH) has successfully completed on Tuesday advisory UAE private investment firm Chimera Capital’s acquisition of a majority stake in Egyptian financial services provider Beltone.

The deal, which amounts to 384.8 million Egyptian pounds ($20.1 million), means Chimera currently owns a 55.9 percent stake in Beltone, which said it plans to “rebuild into a market leader.”

Chimera has acquired the stakes in Beltone at a price of 1.485 pounds per share. They were sold from Orascom Financial, which has ties to Egyptian business tycoon Naguib Sawiris.

The acquisition is part of Chimera’s long-term plan to expand its presence in the Middle East and North Africa region, it explained in a statement.

“We will, over the coming period, look to unlock value and implement an all-encompassing transformation plan, aimed at restoring growth and profitability to Beltone,” Syed Basar Shueb, chairman of Chimera Investment, said.

Following a board meeting held by Beltone on Monday, Chimera named Egyptian former investment minister Dalia Khorshid as new CEO of Beltone.

Founded in 2007, Chimera is part of Abu Dhabi’s Royal Group, which is active in several sectors, including property, construction, food and beverages, hospitality, aviation and healthcare.

In mid-June, Chimera submitted its intent to acquire Beltone to Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA).