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Egypt: Zewail City of Science and Technology and NBK ink EGP 6.25 million cooperation protocol

Zewail City of Science and Technology and National Bank of Kuwait inked a cooperation protocol worth EGP 1.25 million annually for a term of 5 years to provide 10 scholarships to the City’s students in 2018.

The protocol comes in line with the strategy adopted by both parties aimed to support and develop scientific research and to empower innovative scientists by providing all the required prerequisite for success to develop the Egyptian society, in line with the Sustainable Development Strategy: Egypt's vision 2030. One of the main objectives of Zewail City is aimed at keeping abreast of scientific development and contribute towards scientific research to propel Egypt to a leading position among developed countries in the areas of science and research. Meanwhile, NBK is a firm believer that advanced education is the first step on the road to promote the country and head towards a better future, in addition to the importance of education for the Egyptian society’s progress and advancement.

The protocol was signed by Zewail City’s Executive President, Prof. Sherif Sedky and the Managing Director at National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, Dr. Yasser Hassan. The signing ceremony was attended by a number of Zewail City faculty members and management, as well as representatives of the National Bank of Kuwait.

The protocol stipulates that a number of students shall be selected to benefit from receiving the scholarships according to a specific criteria in order to ensure equal opportunities for all qualified students, and to provide a continuous resource to benefit them. Additionally, students are required to maintain academic excellence and outstanding academic performance throughout their term at the university.

"Research has shown that there is no higher return on investment than science and scientific development, but we have to admit that no matter how large budgets get, Zewail City won’t be able to accomplish this difficult task on its own" said Zewail City’s Executive President, Prof. Sherif Sedky “Hence we are witnessing today the importance of the close cooperation between the private sector represented by National Bank of Kuwait and civil society organizations represented by Zwail city, as a scientific research institution that promotes scientific research and innovation, in line with the objectives set forth by the higher education system and scientific research in order to achieve sustainable development in society”.

Prof. Sedky expressed his happiness for signing the protocol and stressed on the importance of such steps as a milestone toward the successful completion of the project that Dr. Ahmed Zewail had long dreamed of establishing to be a beacon for research in the Middle East responsible for graduating highly educated cadres with heightened awareness towards science and technology so that they would contribute to the development of the Egyptian economy and face its challenges. It also strives to propelling Egypt to a leading position among developed countries in the areas of science and research.

Moreover, Prof. Sedky highlighted that this partnership complements Zewail City’s cooperation efforts with private and public institutions and civil society organizations. He also expressed his hopes for continuous flow of support to complete the various stages of the city and achieve a breakthrough in the scientific research arena both in Egypt and the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Dr. Yasser Hassan said that signing this agreement comes in line with NBK’s corporate social responsibility aimed at carrying out the bank’s prominent role to serve the society by directing its support and contributions to many non-profit organizations aimed at developing the society and the people through various means.

Dr. Hassan explained that the University of Science and Technology at Zewail City of Science, through its free scholarships program, sets an ideal model of trustworthy institutions that strive to utilize the support and assistance they receive in the best way possible. He added that this initiative constitutes an important part of NBK’s social corporate responsibility program as the bank strives to support such constructive developmental activities to enrich the community and contribute towards the advancement of its skillful students to showcase their scientific talents and enrich them academically in one of the best scientific research hubs in the country.

Dr. Hassan stressed that all civil society institutions in Egypt should extend their support and develop governmental institutions to aid them in supporting the citizens who need them the most, especially at this crucial time in the country’s history as it seeks to pave the way for a brighter future.

He also added that NBK Group’s overall policy, on the local, regional and international levels, is focused on social corporate responsibility covering the fields of education and health care as it firmly believes in their important role in building societies, developing nations and the prosperity in various fields and aspects.

Zewail City of Science and Technology is a nonprofit, independent institution of learning, research and innovation. Its strategy is to build a new generation of leaders, scientists and entrepreneurs capable of having a significant impact on society. It also aims to introduce new cutting-edge fields of endeavor. The City has established a five-component structure consisting of the he University of Science and Technology, Research Institutions, the Technology Pyramid, the Academy, and the Center for Strategic Studies. Zewail City has been able to register about 380 research papers and obtain 12 patents in the fields of health and environment, which is no small feat by any means.

NBK-Egypt (previously known as Al-Watany Bank of Egypt) is a member of NBK Group and was established in 1980. The bank has a network of 45 branches situated at various strategic locations across Egyptian governorates and cities including Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Delta, Sinai, the Red Sea, and Upper Egypt, as well as industrial areas like Sixth of October, and Tenth of Ramadan. NBK-Egypt is also one of the few banks licensed to offer Sharia compliant solution in addition to the conventional products through its two Islamic branches.

Egypt: NBK-Egypt inks a cooperation protocol with Town Gas to finance natural gas connections to New Cairo districts

National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt (NBK-Egypt) signed a cooperation protocol with the Egyptian Company For National Gas Distribution In Cities "Town Gas", a subsidiary of the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company "EGAS" on Tuesday, December 4, 2018. As per the agreed upon terms, NBK will finance the cost of natural gas connection and operational activities carried out by Town Gas in New Cairo districts through extending credit facilities to Town Gas customers.   

The protocol was signed by Mr. Yasser Hassan, Managing Director, NBK -Egypt, and Eng. Yasser Bahnas, Chairman and Managing Director, Town Gas, in the presence of Mr. Yasser Al Tayeb, Deputy Managing Director, NBK-Egypt and Mr. Amr Al-Alfy, Head-Corporate & Commercial Banking at National Bank of Kuwait - Egypt, in addition to a number of NBK and Town Gas executives.

Dr. Yasser Hassan described this step as part of NBK’s strategy and directions during the current phase aimed at strengthening its position in the retail banking sector by providing advanced services and products tailored to the needs and requirements of its diversified retail customers, based on extensive and thorough market studies. He added that entering into this agreement reflects NBK’s guidelines in that regards. 

He pointed out that NBK is always striving to expand its corporate portfolio. The bank's credit portfolio includes a wide array of companies, including large corporations and SMEs. NBK has affirmed its support to the SME sector, which is of vital and prominent importance to the Egyptian market, through providing numerous competitive alternatives, as it draws on NBK-Group’s extensive resources and international expertise.

Mr. Amr Al-Alfy said that this agreement is part of NBK’s efforts aimed at supporting the petroleum sector, especially Egypt’s direction towards extending natural gas connections throughout the country including Cairo and other governorates to replace butane gas cylinders. This also comes in line with the recent natural gas discoveries, providing Egypt with additional foreign currency resources.

Meanwhile, Eng. Yasser Fouad Bahnas, Chairman and Managing Director of Town Gas, said that this initiative is part of the national project framework sponsored by His Excellency the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources, Eng.

Tariq Al Mulla, aimed at expanding natural gas delivery to all customers to improve Egyptian citizens’ living standards and to expand the customer base. Based on the Minister’s directions, agreements are issued with easier terms to reduce the financial burden and to extend the reach and benefits of this unique ubran service, strongly reflecting on realizing the  government’s objectives aimed at spreading natural gas services and reduce budget subsidies.

Town Gas has successfully provided its customers with an option to finance  natural gas installation costs, allowing them to pay in installments based on the actual estimation for the applicant’s residence. Financing is provided by NBK-Egypt, without setting a minimum or maximum credit limit over a period of five years.

This initiative will connect over 40,000 residential units in addition to the future expansions in New Cairo district, where natural gas installation has already been completed and is considered outside the boundaries where the financing program applies to monthly natural gas consumption bill of EGP 30 per month over 6 years.

NBK-Egypt (previously known as Al-Watany Bank of Egypt) is a member of NBK Group and was established in 1980. The bank currently has 48 branches across various Egyptian governorates including Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Delta, Sinai, the Red Sea, and Upper Egypt, as well as industrial areas like Sixth of October, and Tenth of Ramadan. The bank is also privileged to be among the elite banks within the Egyptian market that hold an Islamic banking license in addition to its conventional licensing. It has two Islamic branches, one in Cairo and the other in Alexandria, thus enabling the bank to offer a comprehensive selection of Sharia compliant products and services in addition to its traditional offerings.

NBK Egypt has an extensive network of branches that are located across the country to serve its customers around the clock, in addition to NBK’s various electronic services such as NBK Online, allowing customers to enjoy secure, safe and convenient banking services anytime and from anywhere.

 National Bank of Kuwait was incorporated in 1952 as the first local bank and the first shareholding company in Kuwait and the Gulf region. NBK continues to enjoy collectively one of the highest ratings among all banks in the Middle East from the three international rating agencies Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and Standard and Poor’s.

The Bank’s ratings are supported by its strong financial indicators, asset quality, high capitalization in addition to its highly recognized and very stable management team, as well as and its disciplined approach to risk management prudent lending policies. NBK was also named among Global Finance’s list of the 50 safest banks in the world for the thriteenth consecutive time. NBK enjoys the widest banking presence with a local and international network of 153 branches reaching 4 continents. NBK’s international presence spans many of the world’s leading financial centers including the United States of America, Europe, GCC, Middle East, China as well as Singapore.

Egypt: NBK – Egypt achieves EGP 1.4 billion in net profits in 9M2018

NBK-Egypt - a member of NBK Group – reported EGP 1.46 billion (Equivalent to KD 25 million) in net profits until the end of the third quarter of 2018 up 26.18% compared to EGP 1.16 billion (Equivalent to KD 20.2 million) for the corresponding period of last year.

Total assets reached EGP 71.84 billion as of the end of September 2018 up 21.76% compared to EGP 59.06 billion for FY2017. Total customers deposits grew by 27.03% for the same period to reach EGP 51.90 billion, compared to EGP 40.85 billion in FY2017, while customer loans and advances reached EGP 39.04 billion as of end September 2018, growing by 15.13% compared to EGP 33.91 billion in FY2017. 

Isam Jassim Al-Sager, NBK’s Group Chief Executive Officer and NBK-Egypt Chairman said that the strong growth achieved by NBK-Egypt is a testament to the success of its vision aimed at affirming its position in the Egyptian market, which is one of the main growth markets for NBK Group, given its promising growth opportunities and positive prospects.

Mr. Al-Sager pointed out that the strength of NBK-Egypt’s profits stems primarily from being operationally driven by improved business environment, reflecting the stability of the economic scene in Egypt. He indicated that this stability will create new investment and financing opportunities for the bank, which in turn will contribute to improving the level of product integration between NBK-Egypt and the Group, thus strengthening its position in the Egyptian market.

Al-Sager confirmed that NBK Group's investments in Egypt are of strategic and long-term nature. NBK-Egypt is considered one of the most important branches for the Group as the branch provides almost third of the profits attributed to international branches, reflecting NBK Group’s confidence in the Egyptian market and its desire to further expand its presence as part of the Egyptian banking sector. 

Meanwhile, Managing Director of NBK-Egypt, Dr. Yasser Hassan highlighted the bank’s continuous growth and solid performance across all financial indicators driven by its conservative strategy as part of NBK Group and its business model based on the diversification of its income and credit portfolio while offering flexible financing solutions and providing innovative financial products at the same time to cater to its customers actual needs derived through detailed in-depth market studies. This is in addition to the bank's solid financial position, strong balance sheets and stable management.

Dr. Hassan added that most of NBK-Egypt’s profits are driven by corporate credit services, with a highly diversified portfolio drawing on the diversification of the Egyptian economy itself. He also added that the bank strives to strengthen its position in retail banking as well over the coming period and managed to make strides in that regards by providing advanced products and services that suit the needs and requirements of various customer segments.

He further added that NBK-Egypt has a wide network of 48 branches spread over premium locations in various Egyptian governorates and cities including: Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Delta, Sinai, Red Sea and Upper Egypt, in addition to the industrial zones in 6th of October and 10th of Ramadan cities. The bank is also privileged to be among the elite banks within the Egyptian market that hold an Islamic banking license in addition to its conventional licensing. It has two Islamic branches, one in Cairo and the other in Alexandria, thus enabling the bank to offer a comprehensive selection of Sharia compliant products and services in addition to its traditional offerings. NBK Egypt has an extensive network of branches that are located across the country to serve its customers around the clock, in addition to NBK’s various electronic services such as NBK Online, allowing customers to enjoy secure banking services anytime and from anywhere.

National Bank of Kuwait was incorporated in 1952 as the first local bank and the first shareholding company in Kuwait and the Gulf region. NBK continues to enjoy collectively one of the highest ratings among all banks in the Middle East from the three international rating agencies Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and Standard and Poor’s. The Bank’s ratings are supported by its strong financial indicators, asset quality, high capitalization in addition to its highly recognized and very stable management team, as well as and its disciplined approach to risk management and prudent lending policies.

NBK was also named among Global Finance’s list of the 50 safest banks in the world for the twelfth consecutive time. NBK enjoys the widest banking presence with a local and international network of 153 branches reaching 4 continents. NBK’s international presence spans many of the world’s leading financial centers including the United States of America, Europe, GCC, Middle East, China as well as Singapore.
 

Egypt: NBK Egypt and the Canadian Ambassador to Cairo deliver 100 biogas production units in Minya Governate

National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt (NBK-Egypt) delivered 100 biogas production units in Abu Qurqas, Minya, in cooperation with the Canadian ambassador to Cairo and in the presence of the Governor of Minya.

This initiative is part of the cooperation protocol signed in June 2018 between NBK-Egypt and the International Labor Organization (ILO) at the headquarter of the Ministry of Investment under the auspices of the Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Dr. Sahar Nasr. The project aims at matching Egyptian youth with decent jobs funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and Economic Development Division in Minya Governate.

The Managing Director at NBK – Egypt, Dr. Yasser Hassan said: “The bank highly recognizes the importance of corporate social responsibility. We continue to create new initiatives to develop Egyptian communities. NKB signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ILO to carry out the biogas production units in Minya to promote growth and social development as an integral part of NBK’s services provide to the Egyptian community".

Meanwhile, Mr. Jess Dutton, Canada's ambassador to Cairo praised the security and safety of Minya Governorate, stressing that the development efforts adopted by the Egyptian government have spread throughout all villages. During his visit, the ambassador expressed his appreciation to the hospitality and good reception he received from the residents of the eastern village of Sheiba in the center of the mountain on the eastern bank of the River Nile in Abu Qurqas.

Major General Qassim Hussein, governor of Minya, praised the initiative aimed at supporting the bioenergy technology, as well as bringing together various parties from the government side, represented by the Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation, Manpower, the Governorate and the scientific side represented by Minya University in cooperation with the private sector represented by NBK – Egypt, as well as five emerging companies, in addition to the development partners represented by the Canadian Embassy and the International Labor Organization with the participation of the community of Abu Qurqas.

The Governor also praised the efforts of all parties participating towards the success of the project, which aims to support bioenergy technology targeting social and economic development of rural communities.

National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, a member of NBK Group, was established in 1980 and has a network comprised of 45 branches situated at strategic locations within the various Egyptian governorates and cities, including Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Delta, Sinai, the Red Sea, and Upper Egypt, as well as industrial cities; including Six of October and Tenth of Ramadan.

NBK-Egypt is also one of the few banks licensed to offer Sharia compliant solutions in addition to the conventional products as it has two Islamic branches.

National Bank of Kuwait was incorporated in 1952 as the first local bank and the first shareholding company in Kuwait and the GCC.

NBK is one of the most prominent Arab banks, and has consistently been awarded the highest credit ratings by the major international rating agencies; Moody’s, S&P and Fitch, attesting to the strength of its financial indicators, asset quality, and solid capitalizing, in addition to the management expertise, clear strategic vision and stable funding base.

NBK was also named among the 50 safest banks in the world for thirteen consecutive times. It also has the widest local and international  banking presence, with over 150 branches and subsidiaries, spanning over 4 continents around the world; including USA, Europe, GCC, MENA, China and Singapore.

Egypt: NBK – Egypt achieves EGP 988.8 million in net profits for 1H 2018

Total assets reached EGP 65.12 billion as of the end of June 2018 up 10.37% compared to EGP 59.06 billion for the end of December 2017. Total customers deposits grew by 16.34% for the same period to reach EGP 47.54 billion, compared to EGP 40.86 billion for the end of December 2017. While customer loans and advances reached EGP 38.39 billion as of end 1H 2018, growing at 13.20% year-on-year, compared to EGP 33.91 billion for the end of December 2017.

Isam Jassim Al-Sager, NBK’s Group Chief Executive Officer and NBK-Egypt Chairman said that the strong growth achieved by NBK-Egypt is a testament to the success of its vision aimed at affirming its position in the Egyptian market, which is one of the main growth markets for NBK Group, given its promising growth opportunities and positive prospects.

Mr. Al-Sager pointed out that the strength of NBK-Egypt’s profits stems primarily from being operationally driven by improved business environment, reflecting the stability of the economic scene in Egypt. He indicated that this stability will create new investment and financing opportunities for the bank, which in turn will contribute to improving the level of product integration between NBK-Egypt and the Group, thus strengthening its position in the Egyptian market.

Al-Sager confirmed that NBK Group's investments in Egypt are of strategic and long-term nature. NBK-Egypt is considered one of the most important branches for the Group as the branch provides almost third of the profits attributed to international branches, reflecting NBK Group’s confidence in the Egyptian market and its desire to further expand its presence as part of the Egyptian banking sector.

Meanwhile, Managing Director of NBK-Egypt, Dr. Yasser Hassan highlighted the bank’s continuous growth and solid performance across all financial indicators driven by its conservative strategy as part of NBK Group and its business model based on the diversification of its income and credit portfolio while offering flexible financing solutions and providing innovative financial products at the same time to cater to its customers actual needs derived through detailed in-depth market studies. This is in addition to the bank's solid financial position, strong balance sheets and stable management.

Dr. Hassan added that most of NBK-Egypt’s profits are driven by corporate credit services, with a highly diversified portfolio drawing on the diversification of the Egyptian economy itself. He also added that the bank strives to strengthen its position in retail banking as well over the coming period.

He further added that NBK-Egypt has a wide network of 45 branches spread over premium locations in various Egyptian governorates and cities including: Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Delta, Sinai, Red Sea and Upper Egypt, in addition to the industrial zones in 6th of October and 10th of Ramadan cities. The bank is also privileged to be among the elite banks within the Egyptian market that hold an Islamic banking license in addition to its conventional licensing. It has two Islamic branches, one in Cairo and the other in Alexandria, thus enabling the bank to offer a comprehensive selection of Sharia compliant products and services in addition to its traditional offerings.

National Bank of Kuwait was incorporated in 1952 as the first local bank and the first shareholding company in Kuwait and the Gulf region. NBK continues to enjoy collectively one of the highest ratings among all banks in the Middle East from the three international rating agencies Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and Standard and Poor’s. The Bank’s ratings are supported by its strong financial indicators, asset quality, high capitalization in addition to its highly recognized and very stable management team, as well as and its disciplined approach to risk management and prudent lending policies. NBK was also named among Global Finance’s list of the 50 safest banks in the world for the twelfth consecutive time. NBK enjoys the widest banking presence with a local and international network of 153 branches reaching 4 continents. NBK’s international presence spans many of the world’s leading financial centers including the United States of America, Europe, GCC, Middle East, China as well as Singapore.

Egypt: NBK-Egypt inks a new joint cooperation agreement with Dar Al Orman Charity Association to support the poorest villages in Egypt

For the second consecutive year, similar to last year's cooperation between NBK - Egypt and Dar Al Orman Charity Association to support the development of the neediest villages in Upper Egypt, the Bank signed on Wednesday 11 July 2018 a new cooperation protocol with the Orman Association. The Bank will cooperate with the Association in providing assistance to the neediest villages in Sohag governorate in terms of water supply, rehabilitation of houses and the delivery of cattle heads to Female Headed Households (FHH).

Under the agreement, 115 homes will be rehabilitated located in four of Sohag’s poorest villages, in addition to another 30 homes, where access to potable clean water will be supplied and 70 households would benefit from animal distribution  program.

Dr. Yasser Hassan, Managing Director of NBK-Egypt and Eng. Hussam Eldeen Alqabbani, Dar Al Orman Charity Association Chairman signed the protocol in the presence of several executives from NBK-Egypt and Dar Al Orman.

Commenting on the occasion, Dr. Yasser Hassan, Managing Director of NBK-Egypt stated that the conclusion of such agreement stems from the bank’s commitment to serve local community through channeling its donations to trustworthy organizations with solid record of accomplishment, targeting sustainable development in poor areas, such as Dar el Orman.
From his side, Eng.

Hossam Al Qabbani stated that the association is always pleased to cooperate with the NBK-Egypt to support the comprehensive development of the neediest villages in Egypt, which comes in line with the association’s core strategy in maximizing the involvement of prominent economic organizations towards helping needy families in poor villages.

Al Qabbani highlighted that Dar Al Orman has launched “Support a Poor Village” development project years ago, in order to provide relief and development to the neediest villages through the reconstruction of deteriorated houses in these villages. He pointed out that the association aims in the coming period to double the number of villages that it successfully develops to exceed over 800 villages across Egypt.

Egypt: Under the auspices of the Ministry of International Cooperation, NBK Egypt signs an MOU with ILO to establish 100 biogas units in Minya

Dr. Yasser Ismail Hassan, Managing Director of the National Bank of Kuwait - Egypt (NBK-Egypt) and Mr. Peter van Goy, the Director of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Office in Cairo, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the establishment of 100 biogas plants in Minya Governorate.

The MOU was signed under the auspices of the Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Dr. Sahar Nasr who attended the event and in the presence of Mr. Essam Badawi the Governor of Minya, Mr. Jamal Al-Din Abul-Magd, the Head of Minya University, Mr.Jess Dutton, Canada's ambassador to Cairo, and Ms. Amal Mowafy the Chief Technical Advisor of ILO “Decent Jobs for Egypt's Young People” and a representatives of the Ministry of Manpower.

Under the MoU, NBK-Egypt will be supporting sustainable social and economic development of rural communities in Minya through the financial support of five start-up companies concerned with the construction and operation of 100 domestic biogas units in Minya villages. Biogas units are being implemented with the technical support of the ILO project “Decent Jobs for Egypt's Young People” funded by the Canadian Government

The initiative aims to support biotechnology to achieve sustainable social and economic development for rural communities by training young engineers to build and maintain biogas production units, as well as installing biogas production units to generate energy and organic fertilizers. 

The Minister of Investment and International Cooperation stated that the initiative helps reduce poverty, create jobs and improve living conditions in the targeted villages of Minya. Accordingly, it is one of the most important project that is given top priority by the ministry. 

The Governor of Minya, stated that the ILO has submitted several projects during the last period, including this project, which was approved by the governorate. The President of Minia University stated that the university provides technical and scientific support to young people who are implementing the biogas project.

The Director of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Office in Cairo stated that job creation for young people is one of the means that contributes to inclusive economic growth in Egypt, where the organization is working with the public and private sectors to provide jobs for young people by supporting green jobs.

"Investment is very important in Egypt, and Canada wants to play an active role in supporting Egypt’s development, as one of Canada's priorities is targeting inclusive growth through entrepreneurship," said the Canadian ambassador to Cairo.

NBK- Egypt Managing Director stated that the bank chose to participate in this project based on its previous success in Port Said that offered creative solutions to community problems namely, animal wastes, clean energy sources unemployment. NBK-Egypt has been keen to serve the Egyptian community through focusing on the development interventions, which come in line with Egypt’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) including economic empowerment, education, health and environmental care.

Egypt: National Bank of Kuwait - Egypt achieves a net profit of EGP 496. 6 million(KD 8.5 million) by the end of the first quarter of 2018

National Bank of Kuwait - Egypt, a subsidiary of  the National Bank of Kuwait Group, reported a net profit of EGP 496.9 million as of the end of the first quarter of 2018 (KD 8.5 million), compared to EGP 329.54 million (KD 5.8 million) for the same period last year, with a growth of 50.78%.

The total assets grew by 12.81% reaching EGP 59.51 billion as of the end of March 2018, compared to EGP 52.75 billion for the same period last year. Moreover, the total customer deposits during this period increased by 13.23% reaching EGP 44.02 billion compared to EGP 38.87 billion for the same period last year, while net customer loans and facilities rose as of the end of March 2018 by 42.80% to reach EGP 35.77 billion compared to EGP 25.01 billion for the same period last year.

The Group Chief Executive Officer at National Bank of Kuwait and Chairman of the National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, Mr. Isam Jassem Al-Sager, stated that the strong growth achieved by the bank in Egypt reaffirms its continued success in enhancing its position in the Egyptian market. This market represents one of the main growing markets of NBK Group, given the promising growth opportunities and positive prospects of this market.”

He pointed out that the strength of the profits of National Bank - Egypt stems from the fact that they are operational profits resulting from the improvement of the business environment, which reflects the stability of the economic situation in Egypt. He indicated that this stability will create for the bank new opportunities (investment and financing), which will contribute to improving the level of product integration between the bank and the group, thus strengthening its position in the Egyptian market.

Al-Sager affirmed that NBK Group investments in Egypt are strategic long-term investments. NBK - Egypt is deemed one of its most important affiliated foreign branches. The profits generated by the Bank's operations in Egypt represent approximately one third of the profits of the Group's foreign branches, which indicates its confidence in the Egyptian market. Therefore, the Group is firmly committed to expanding this market among banks in the Egyptian banking sector.

Financial indicators

For his part, the Managing Director of National Bank of Kuwait – Egypt, Dr. Yasser Hassan, said:”  As the Q1 results showed, the bank continues its strong performance by achieving high growth rates in all its financial indicators. These results are due to its prudent policy as a member of the group, and its business model which depends on diversifying and balancing the sources of income and loan portfolio, and  providing more flexible financing solutions. Also, based on careful and in-depth market research, the bank offers innovative banking products to meet the actual needs of customers,  as well as the bank has a robust financial position, budgetary strength, successful strategy, and solid management.”

He added that most of NBK-Egypt profits stem from credit operations with the corporate sector, where the bank's credit portfolio includes a wide variety of companies that deal with it, thus reflecting the diversification of the Egyptian economy. He pointed out that the bank seeks to strengthen its position in the retail sector of individuals during the coming period.

He indicated that the bank now has 43 branches spread throughout the Egyptian governorates and that it seeks to increase their number to 60 branches over the next three years. This network spreads in the most vital locations in the various governorates and cities of Egypt, including: Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Delta, Sinai, the Red Sea and Upper Egypt, as well as industrial areas such as: the cities of the Sixth of October and the tenth of Ramadan. NBK- Egypt is also one of the few banks in the Egyptian market that have an Islamic license in addition to the conventional license. It has two Islamic branches in Cairo and Alexandria, which allow the bank to offer Sharia compliant products as well as conventional products.

It is worth mentioning that the National Bank of Kuwait, established in 1952 as the oldest national bank and financial institution in the State of Kuwait and the Arabian Gulf region, is one of the largest and most prominent Arab banks and it has the highest credit rating in the Middle East. The global agencies Moody's, Standard & Poor's, and Fitch unanimously confirm the robustness of its financial indicators, the quality of its high assets, its strong capitalization, the experience of its management, the clarity of its strategic vision and the availability of a stable funding base. The National Bank of Kuwait also maintains its position among the top 50 safest banks in the world for the twelfth consecutive year. NBK Group today has the largest network of local and international branches, reaching 153 branches and subsidiaries covering four continents around the world and spread across the United States, Europe, the Gulf States, the Middle East, China and Singapore.