Acrow Misr for Metal Formwork and Scaffolding, which is listed on the Egyptian Exchange, intends to voluntarily delist its shares from the market due to its non-compliance with the rules related to the free float percentage, Mohamed Hamza, the company's investor relations executive told Zawya Arabic.

Quick background and what is new?

The company announced its intention to voluntarily delist from the stock exchange in a statement on Tuesday (August 26) without providing a reason.

In another statement issued on Tuesday (September 2), Acrow said it had obtained approval from the Financial Regulatory Authority to proceed with the delisting procedures.

Hamza told Zawya Arabic that the delisting decision was due to the low free float percentage of the company's shares on the main market, which currently stands at approximately 7%.

Egypt’s stock exchange rules stipulate that the minimum free float percentage is 10% of a company's listed shares, a level that is difficult for the company to achieve, according to Hamza last Tuesday.

"Because of weak trading and the low free float percentage... we won't reach 10%," said Hamza, who clarified that the company's major shareholders' insistence to keep their stake makes it difficult to reach the legal percentage and explains the delisting decision.

Acrow Misr was founded in 1977 and listed on the bourse in 1982, with most of its share - 78.77% - owned by the Industrial Engineering Co. for Construction and Development (ICON), which is listed on the Egyptian bourse, according to Acrow's latest disclosure for the first half of the year sent to the bourse on July 9.

Other significant 16.36% of shares are held by the Arab Contractors Investment Company, a subsidiary of the state-owned Arab Contractors Company. Acrow has branches in Europe, Africa and the GCC.

While Egypt’s stock exchange seeks to attract companies for listing, it also faces the challenge of delisting by listed companies, the latest of which was the delisting of Ezz Steel shares from the exchange in Q1 2025.

This year, the stock exchange witnessed two initial public offerings (IPOs) - Egypt's Bonyan real estate investment company and National Printing company, as well as two direct listings for Valu and Go Green. The four companies are all private enterprises with zero state stake.

The new listings were hailed by stock market officials and investors, seen as a substitute win. The government has so far failed to list any public company this year despite a plan to exit from 10 companies by the end of 2025.

What is next?

The company is now awaiting approval from its general assembly on the delisting decision, but a date for the meeting has not yet been set.

The board of directors set the maximum purchase price for affected shareholders at EGP 100 ($2.1) per share as per the statement on August 26, which is higher than last Wednesday’s trading price of around EGP 95.

Acrow Misr had said that if the fair value of the share - that will be set by a consultancy firm assigned by the company - exceeds the specified maximum limit, the board of directors has the right to cancel the company's delisting procedures.

Click here to read this article in Arabic. شركة اكرو مصر تعتزم شطب أسهمها اختياريا من البورصة المصرية - ما القصة؟