The Sovereign Fund of Egypt (SFE) could be finalizing a possible sale of 30% of the new hotel company to Gulf sovereign funds and investors during Q1 of 2022, according to Bloomberg Asharq which cited two sources close to the matter.

The new hotel company, announced in early 2022, is expected to merge seven or eight state-owned hotels into a single entity ahead of a listing on the EGX.

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The sources noted that the hotels included were Aswan's Sofitel Legend Old Cataract Hotel, Marriott Mena House, Cairo Marriott Hotel, and Luxor’s Sofitel Winter Palace.

Another person familiar with the upcoming deal explained that the SFE is already completing its pre-offering evaluations, with the KSA’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) particularly interested in the offering.

The PIF launched its Egyptian investment vehicle, the Saudi Egyptian Investment Company (SEIC), last year to “capitalize on lucrative investment opportunities within a number of promising Egyptian economic sectors”.

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Egypt has been looking to sell shares in several of its historical hotels to Arab investors as part of efforts to attract capital and boost foreign currency reserves, particularly as it continues to deal with a shortage of hard currency and seeks to expand its sources of income for the country’s general budget.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly announced the new hotel company last year, which would also merge Egypt’s seven largest ports under one entity in preparation for an IPO.