Talks between Saudi Arabia and Egypt regarding the acquisition of the Egyptian government-owned United Bank by the Saudi Public Investment Fund have stalled.
Bloomberg and Reuters agencies quoted sources as confirming that the suspension of the talks, which began last year, was due to a disagreement over how to calculate the impact of the depreciation of the Egyptian pound on the deal.
The sources indicated that the Saudi Fund - which is the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom - wants to evaluate the United Bank in Egyptian pounds, provided that the value of the deal is determined in dollars upon transfer of ownership, while the Central Bank of Egypt prefers evaluation in dollars only.
According to Bloomberg, the value of The United Bank is estimated at $ 600 million, and it was established in 2006, and it has 65 branches in Egypt.
Egypt has devalued the pound 3 times in about a year, making it the third worst performing currency in the world over the past 12 months.