The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has not yet taken any serious steps related to either the selling of United Bank to a strategic investor or the offering of Arab African International Bank (AAIB) and Banque du Caire’s shares in an initial public offering (IPO), according to CBE’s Deputy Governor, Gamal Negm. Negm said that this issue is still being studied, noting that no set timeline has been set by the CBE for its completion. CBE Governor Tarek Amer revealed in March 2016 that CBE intends to sell United Bank to a strategic investor, and offer 40% of AAIB’s shares and 20% of Banque du Caire’s shares in an IPO. The CBE is addressing several international institutions, including Morgan Stanley, to evaluate AAIB and Banque du Caire, in preparation for offering part of their shares in the stock market. CBE owns 49.37% of AAIB’s shares, and the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) owns 49.37%. It is expected that CBE and KIA will offer 20% of their shares each in the Egyptian Exchange (EGX). Regarding Banque du Caire, Negm explained that the CBE aims to increase the bank’s capital by 20% on the EGX, and that it did not intend to sell part of its shares. He added that the evaluation process for United Bank, 99.9%-owned by CBE, has not yet started. (The Daily News Egypt)