NBE Receives 80% Of Settlement Contract Prepayment From Kouta

The National Bank of Egypt (NBE) received 80% of the prepayment conditioned for the debt settlement agreement agreed on with the delinquent businessman Abdel Wahab Kouta, the chairman of Misr Steel Group. Kouta owes EGP 500 million to the bank which financed the establishment of a steel rolling factory in Port Said.

Sources told Amwal Al Ghad that NBE received about EGP 8 million out of the selling of the businessman’s factories which were sold in a bankruptcy case. This value equals to the bank’s share in the businessman’s assets which was rented for years. Kouta will pay EGP 2 million to the bank so as to guarantee his seriousness in paying off his debt. The bank will not sign a final settlement agreement before receiving 10% of his debt (= EGP 500 million) by installments.

The debt settlement prepayment will be deposited to NBE in return for waiving the lawsuit raised by the bank against Kouta for issuing checks without balance.

Abdel Wahab Kouta is from the top businessmen who worked in steel industry as he owns three steel factories for iron rolling and reinforcing in Port Said. However, these factories defaulted in debt repayment to a number of banks including the National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr, Banque Du Caire and Suez Canal Bank. The Group was announced bankrupt and Kouta was sentenced to more than 100 years in prison.