New York February 4th 2008 American investors have booked every seat at a unique opportunity in New York to discuss investing in Egypt and the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA). "I am not surprised," said Mr. Aladdin Saba, Chairman of Beltone Financial, the region's premier investment bank. "There are compelling indicators attracting investors to Egypt. Abundant flows of Arabian Gulf petro-dollars, sound fiscal policies and the non-existence of the subprime lending crisis are cushioning Egypt from volatility," he said.

Saba was speaking ahead of First Egypt Day at the New York Stock Exchange. Beltone Financial accepted an invitation to Ring the Bell at the close of trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on February 4th 2008. Egypt will be represented at the closing bell ceremony by Minister of Investment, Dr. Mahmound Moheildin, the Chairman of the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (CASE) Mr. Maged Shawki. The CEO of NYSE Euronext, Mr. Duncan Niederauer will be present.  Corporate leaders from Egypt and American investors in Egypt will accompany them.

Beltone Financial is the fastest-growing investment bank in the Middle East. Headquartered in Cairo, Beltone Financial has offices throughout the region. Beltone Enclave opened in New York in 2007, the first investment bank exclusively dedicated to serving institutional and high-net-worth investors in the Middle East and North Africa.

Saba said: "The fundamentals that support investment in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region are not impacted by the liquidity crisis. Subprime lending is alien in our society and our business.

"The Arabian Gulf States have excess liquidity of up to US$ 500 billion a year. Last year Gulf States invested US$6 billion in Egypt - more than half the record US$ 11.1 billion of total foreign direct investment (FDI) in Egypt. Significant new investment is also coming from Italy, Spain, France and Turkey, joining major investors from the United States and Britain. Egyptians are also investing as never before, with huge increases of new investors in equity markets and people establishing small and medium sized companies. Also, we see the talents and skills of Egypt's youthful, well-educated workforce being employed in sound, expanding industries, such as banking, IT and manufacturing," Saba said.

"Egypt's stock exchange has been consistently one of the world's top performers in recent years. The key financial indicators are registering optimism for 2008, continuing the spectacular upward trend. We see a profusion of quality transactions in the pipeline."

Egypt's investment opportunities are unique, Saba said. Trading volumes and values have crossed the threshold that qualifies them for institutional investment. Investor confidence has been boosted by Egypt's adoption of an OECD-approved Code of Corporate Governance, which is being considered by other MENA countries, and a Freedom of Information Law is passing through Egypt's Parliament.  Investor Relations departments and the 'Big Four' auditors are ensuring the highest levels of transparency and disclosure in accordance with worldwide best practices.

A wide range of Government reforms has transformed the economic environment in Egypt, Saba said. Tax and customs rates have been reduced significantly. The financial services industry is emulating world-class global players. Foreign Direct Investment has leapt from US$ 400 million in 2002 to US$ 11.1 billion in 2007 and is expected to be even higher in 2008. Foreign trade is expanding rapidly, especially trade between the US and Egypt, which has risen 50 percent in the past three years.

Saba cited Egypt's unique geographical position at the gateway to the world's largest bloc of consumers: 2 billion people on three continents in Asia, Africa and Europe.

PANEL'S DESCRIPTION

Leading figures responsible for the resurgence of Egypt's economy will share their insights into investments in 2008 in New York on the 4th and 5th of February 2008. Foreign investment in Egypt has surged from UD$400 million to more than US$ 11 billion in the last few years and the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (CASE) has become one of the world's fastest growing stock exchanges.

On the 4th February the crucial role reform has played in energizing the Capital Markets and investment climate will be discussed at panel sessions at the New York Stock Exchange Boardroom. After Mr. Aladdin Saba, Chairman Beltone Financial has welcomed guests, Ambassador Nabil Fahmy, Egyptian Ambassador to the USA will introduce the speakers.

At 14.20 Session I will begin: 'New Investment Opportunities: The Role of Reform' led by HE Dr. Mahmoud Moheildin, Minister of Investment, Egypt.

At 14.50 Session II: 'New Investment Opportunities: Capital Markets' Crucial Role' moderated by  Mr. Aladdin Saba, will be led by Mr. Duncan Niederauer, CEO, NYSE Euronext and Mr. Maged Shawky, Chairman, Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange, Egypt.

At 15.35 Session III: 'US perspective: Investing in the Middle East' will be led by Mr. Robert Mosbacher, Jr. President and CEO, Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC).

At 16.00 Mr. Angus Blair, Head of Research, Beltone Financial, will give a presentation on 'Beltone's Perspective on Middle East Capital Markets' followed at 16.20 by Ms.  Tanya Amaya, Assistant Vice President, The Bank of New York Mellon, who will present an 'Overview on the Egyptian Depositary Receipts Program'.

At 16.40 Egyptian companies will make presentations, moderated by Mr. Hazem Barakat, Chairman, Beltone Private Equity.

On February 5th at The Four Seasons Hotel, New York, Mr. Stephen Inglis, President and CEO Beltone Enclave Securities, will welcome guests at 8.30 am.

At 8.45 Session I: 'Investor experiences: Unique Opportunities in the Middle East' will begin moderated by Mr. Karim Baghdady, Managing Director, Beltone Enclave Securities. Panels will include Mr. Karim Sawabini, Managing Director, Moon Capital; Mr. Ammar Al-Khudairy, CEO, Amwal Al Khaleej; Mr. Mustafa Abdel Wadood, Managing Director, Abraaj Capital and Mr. Wahid Chammas, Senior Equity Research Analyst, Janus Capital.

The rest of the day will be devoted to One-on-One meetings between investors and Egyptian companies.

SPEAKERS BIOGRAPHIES

Ammar Al Khudairy - Al-Khudairy is Managing Director, Chief Executive Officer and founding shareholder of Amwal Al Khaleej. Prior to founding Amwal, Ammar held a number of senior management positions with Saudi Banking institutions, including Head of Strategic Business Development and Central Region Head with Banque Saudi Fransi, Country Head with Gulf International Bank, among others. Ammar's professional track record spans a number of banking disciplines including M&A, Project Finance, Corporate Finance, Corporate Banking, and Merchant Banking. Ammar also sits on a number of corporate boards, including SAVOLA (Jeddah), Damas` (Dubai), AlTayyar Travel (Riyadh), United Sugar Company (Jeddah), Amwal Invest (Amman), Lebanese Canadian Bank (Beirut), and Kingdom Holding. Ammar earned his Masters degree in Engineering Administration from The George Washington University in Washington D.C., after earning a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering.

Tanya Amaya - Tanya is an assistant vice-president at The Bank of New York and leads the Institutional Investor Access team within the Global Capital Markets group. Her previous experience includes marketing at the independent research firm IRG Research and Japanese equity sales at Merrill Lynch. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Boston University.

Wahid Chammas - Wahid Pierre Chammas is a Senior Equity Research Analyst, focusing on Janus' investments in emerging markets (Russia, E. Europe, Middle East, and Africa) as well as the consumer group (gaming, lodging, food and tobacco). Mr. Chammas joined Janus in February 2005. Prior to joining Janus, he spent eight years at Goldman, Sachs, & Co., where he was a Vice President and Equity Securities Analyst, covering the media, sector. Mr. Chammas joined Goldman Sachs' Investment Research Division in 2002 from Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM), and was promoted to Vice President later that year. At GSAM, he served as the Chief-of-Staff to Gary Black (now CEO of Janus) and the senior leadership in day-to-day strategic planning and management activities across the Asset Management Division. Prior to that, he worked in the U.S. institutional sales group and the U.S. fixed income product management team at GSAM, where he assisted in product management of all fixed income products with a specialization in high yield debt. Mr. Chammas was one of the youngest professionals at Goldman Sachs ever to serve as an inter-divisional Chief-of-Staff and one of the youngest to be promoted to Vice President. He graduated with highest distinction honors, Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude, from Amherst College in 1997, and also conducted research and spent time at the University of Michigan Medical School and Harvard University. Mr. Chammas was awarded two Howard Hughes Fellowships and the James R. Elster Award for outstanding achievement in Biology.

Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin - Dr. Mohieldin has been Minister of Investment of the Arab Republic of Egypt since 2004. He is a member of the General Secretariat, the Policies Secretariat and is the Chairman of the Economic Committee of the National Democratic Party (NDP). Dr. Mohieldin was nominated a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and is a member of the Commission on Growth and Development of the World Bank.  

Robert Mosbacher, Jr. - Nominated by President George W. Bush, Robert A. Mosbacher, Jr., was sworn in as the ninth President and Chief Executive Officer of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) in October 2005. From 1986 to 2005, Mr. Mosbacher was President and CEO of Mosbacher Energy Company of Houston, Texas, an independent oil and gas exploration and production company. He was also Vice Chairman of Mosbacher Power Group, an independent electric power developer, which began in 1995, and was sold in 2003. Mr. Mosbacher was Chairman of the Board of the Greater Houston Partnership in 2004, a private, nonprofit organization that serves as the city's chamber of commerce. He also served as Chairman of the Partnership's Health Care Advisory Committee, and member and former Chairman of its Education & Workforce Advisory Committee. Mr. Mosbacher has also served as Chairman of the Board of the Methodist Hospital, the Salvation Army, and the Greater Houston Area Chapter of the American Red Cross, all in Houston. He is founder and co-Chairman of Rebuilding Together Houston (formerly PSI HomeSavers), which organizes volunteers to deliver free exterior home repairs and has resulted in the repair of over 4600 houses for qualified low-income elderly or disabled Houstonians. He also served on the boards of South Texas College of Law and the Society for the Performing Arts in Houston.  

Mr. Duncan Niederauer - Mr. Niederauer was appointed Chief Executive Officer of NYSE Euronext on December 1, 2007. He is NYSE Euronext's President, co-Chief Operating Officer and head of US Cash Markets, as well as a member of NYSE Euronext's Management Committee, positions he has held since April 2007. Prior to joining NYSE Euronext, Mr. Niederauer served as co-head of Goldman Sachs' Equities Division execution services since 2005.

Karim Sawabini - Karim joined Moon Capital from OCM EMF where he had been an Analyst since 2003.  Prior to that, Karim worked for Morgan Stanley for three years in the Investment Banking Division, most recently as an Associate in the Global Communications and Media Group.  Before that, Karim spent 1 ½ years at J.P. Morgan & Co., Investment Banking Division, as an Analyst in the Financial Institutions Group.  Karim received a B.S. degree in International Business and Finance along with a minor in Economics from Georgetown University.

Mr. Maged Shawky - Mr. Shawky is chairman of the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange (CASE). Prior to his current post, Mr. Shawky was a Board Member of the Exchange, and represented the Capital Market Authority (the Regulators) for three years. Prior to this, Mr. Shawky worked as a consultant to the Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade for Securities Markets Issues for 10 years.

COMPANY SPEAKERS BIOGRAPHIES

Mahmoud Abdel Latif - Mr. Abdel Latif is currently Chairman of the Bank of Alexandria. He has over 30 years of international banking experience as well as management of a portfolio of corporate and public sector clients in Egypt, KSA and Kuwait. Prior to that, Mr. Abdel Latif was Chairman of Egyptian American Bank and worked before that for Cairo Far East Bank and Banque Du Caire and other world class financial institutions. He also sits on the boards of a number of local and international organizations.  

Alaa Arafa - Mr. Alaa Arafa is Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, and a director. Mr. Alaa Arafa is Chairman of the Egyptian Garments Exporters Association, Vice Chairman of the negotiation team for the Egyptian-Israeli-U.S. Industrial Zones Agreement, a founder and a board member of Commercial International Investment Company, a leading investment bank, a founder and board member of Expolink, an exporters association, and a board member of the Egyptian Center for Economic Studies, the government's consultant on economic reform. 

Akil Hamed Beshir - Mr Beshir was appointed Chairman of Telecom Egypt in June 2000. Previously, Mr Beshir was General Manager and Managing Director of Giza Systems Engineering from 1978 to 2000. He holds a B.Sc. in Communications Engineering from Cairo University and a Professional Diploma and MA in Management from the American University in Cairo. 

Paul Chekaiban - Mr. Chekaiban was appointed a Managing Director of Ezz Steel in 2005. He has also been a member of the Board of directors of EZDK and EFS since 2000, the General Manager of EFS (a position he has held since 1998), and Chairman and Managing Director of ESM (a position he has held since 2005).

Hisham Ezz Al-Arab - Successfully directed the Commercial International Bank (Egypt) (CIB) to become Egypt's most profitable financial institution. Since joining CIB in April 1999 as Deputy Managing Director, Mr. Ezz Al Arab's vision has been key in transforming CIB from a niche corporate bank to Egypt's leading financial services group. Since his nomination as the Chairman and Managing Director of CIB in September 2002, Mr. Ezz Al-Arab has accelerated CIB's strategic progress to become the highest-ranking bank in Egypt. Prior to Joining CIB, Mr. Ezz Al-Arab has led a distinguished international banking career as Managing Director in global financial institutions in London (Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan and Merrill Lynch), Bahrain, New York and Cairo. His experience includes trading of fixed-income securities and derivatives as well as institutional clients' relationship management. 

Taher Gargour - Taher Gargour joined Lecico as Business Development Director in January 2005. He is a citizen of Lebanon and the United States and holds an MA from SAIS-Johns Hopkins. Prior to joining Lecico, He worked for seven years in the EMEA research department of HSBC Securities, covering Egyptian equities and rising to head the EMEA research team. Taher Gargour is the son of Chairman, CEO and co-owner of Lecico Egypt, Mr. Gilbert Gargour.

Raouf Ghabbour - Dr. Ghabbour is the CEO and founder of GB Auto, one of the largest automotive groups in Egypt and the Middle East. Having started his career as a physician, Dr. Ghabbour quickly found his passion in a completely different line of work: the trading business field. He then joined the family trading business in 1977, rising quickly within the organization until he became Managing Director. Dr. Ghabbour grew GB Auto into one of the largest automotive players in North Africa and the Middle East, with dominant positions in the Egyptian market across passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, 2 & 3 wheelers, construction equipment, and tires trading, and a growing export business. The company underwent an IPO in July 2007 and became the first pure play automotive company to list across the MENA markets. Today, GB Auto employs over 6,000 employees, boasts the largest passenger car assembly capacity across the Middle East, enjoys sales of close to $1 billion, and a market capitalization of over $1.5 billion. Dr. Ghabbour graduated from the faculty of medicine Cairo University in 1976. 

Aristide Guzzetti - Mr. Aristide Guzzetti is Chief Financial Officer, and director. Mr. Aristide Guzzetti previously served as Chairman of Wooltech (Trieste, Italy) and in various management positions with Klopman, a fabrics manufacturer, DMC Group, a leading cotton sector company, and the Marzotto Group, a textile and garments company, as well as consulting positions with CHARGEURS, a wool company, and other leading textile and garments companies.

Maher R. Maksoud - Maher was appointed as CEO and Managing Director of Sixth of October Development and Investment Company (SODIC) in March of 2006.  Maher started his career as a Director of Development at Orascom Projects and Tourist Developments (OPTD).  He spent a total of 8 years at OPTD culminating in his promotion to Executive Vice President in 1996 and CEO of the hotel division in 1998. In 2001 he started his own restaurant business becoming the Managing Partner of Delicious Inc. S.A.E. which developed Cilantro, Egypt's market leading chain of Cafes which he sold in 2005 realizing 2500% return on initial investment having opened 18 outlets with a staff of 500 employees. Maher was born on September 22nd 1969 and graduated from the American University in Cairo, with a major in economics in June 1991. He completed his M.Sc. in Economics at the London School of Economics in September 1992. He is married with one son.

Nassef Sawiris - Mr. Nassef Sawiris has been a Director and the Chief Executive Officer of OCI since its incorporation in 1998. Mr. Sawiris oversaw the construction activities of Orascom since 1990. He is a member of the Business Secretariat of the National Democratic Party, the American Chamber of Commerce, the German-Arab Chamber of Industry & Commerce and the Young President's Club. Mr. Sawiris was born in 1961, is an Egyptian citizen and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Chicago.  

Samih Sawiris - Mr. Sawiris founded Orascom Projects for Touristic Development and Orascom Hotel Holdings, the two companies that merged to form Orascom Hotels & Development (OHD). He is the CEO and Chairman of the Board of OHD. Mr. Sawiris is the drive behind the company's ongoing success and development.

Alex Shalaby - Alex Shalaby was elected as President and CEO of ECMS effective November 1st, 2005. With an extensive experience of over 35 years in the telecommunication field, Shalaby joined Mobinil since its inception in 1998 as Board Member and Chief Regulatory and Legal Affairs Officer. In his position, he was involved in all operational aspects of the company. Prior to his appointment as Chief Regulatory and Legal Affairs Officer for ECMS, Alex Shalaby was the Director for Government Affairs for AT&T in Washington, DC. Shalaby led several successful operations for AT&T through several managerial positions. Between 1980 to 1993, he was the Managing Director for AT&T in Egypt and General Manager for the MENA Region. Alex holds a B. SC. in Electrical Engineering from Alexandria University and a Masters of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from San José State University, California.

BELTONE BIOGRAPHIES 

Karim Baghdady - Mr. Baghdady joined Beltone Financial's Cairo office in 2006 and has since acquired a broad knowledge of Middle Eastern markets and companies. In October 2007, he was instrumental in forming the joint venture between Beltone Financial and Enclave Capital in New York, the first dedicated Middle Eastern brokerage catering to financial institutions in the U.S. Mr. Baghdady manages the institutional sales desk and oversees the distribution of Beltone research. Previously, Mr. Baghdady spent ten years at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) where, in 2002, he became a member of the NYSE working as a trader for the direct access firm Mogavero, Lee & Co. representing multi-billion dollar institutional clients.  He is experienced in long/short, corporate repurchase, risk/arbitrage and capital commitment. Mr. Baghdady obtained a BA in Finance from Rutgers University and is a licensed registered representative.

Hazem Barakat - Chairman Beltone Private Equity - As well as holding the position of Chairman of Beltone Private Equity, Mr. Barakat is also CEO of MIRACO-Carrier. He is an experienced investor in private equity ventures as well as an accomplished business strategist. Mr. Barakat graduated from the New York Institute of Technology in 1982 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is currently a Member of the Advisory Council of the School of Business, Economics, and Communication at the American University in Cairo and a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Egyptian Economic Forum. He is also a member of the American Chamber of Commerce, the British Egyptian Business Association, and the Egyptian Businessmen's Association.

Angus Blair - Head of Research - Mr. Angus Blair is spearheading the Research product across the MENA region with sectoral research teams specialising in all the key sectors of the region's markets. Mr Blair has over 24 years of experience under his belt in investment banking. Prior to joining Beltone he was a consultant and was previously head of asset management and product development at Al Rajhi Bank. Prior to that, he was managing director at Safron Advisors, one of the first private equity firms specialising in the MENA region. Previously, Mr Blair headed the sales, trading and research operations of a number of emerging markets at ING Barings and ABN-AMRO. 

Stephen Inglis - Prior to joining Enclave in December 2006, Mr. Inglis spent the previous year as Managing Director and Head of Equities for the Arab Banking Corporation in Bahrain. Until February 2005, Mr. Inglis was Executive Director for Mergers & Acquisitions at WestLB in New York. From July 2001 through December 2003 he served as Head of Investment Banking for WestLB in Tokyo managing underwritings, M&A, and private equity transactions. Prior to the assignment in Tokyo he spent four years as Head of Sales for Japanese Equities at WestLB New York.  Before joining WestLB in 1997 he spent ten years in Japanese equity sales at Robert Fleming, Morgan Stanley, and Nikko Securities. Mr. Inglis is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), holds a MA in Economics from the University of British Columbia, and was a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Economics, Carleton University in Ottawa.

Aladdin Saba - Chairman Beltone Financial - Mr. Saba is founder of Beltone Financial. Mr. Saba was a co-founder of Hermes Financial, which in 1996 became EFG-Hermes. Prior to founding Hermes he was a Senior Portfolio Manager at Kidder, Peabody & Co. Inc. in New York. He is a founding member of The Egyptian Investment Management Association in addition to The Egyptian Capital Markets Association.  Mr. Saba holds a Master's degree in Business Administration from The Wharton School, and a further Master's degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Engineering from Cairo University.

-Ends-

MEDIA CONTACTS FD:
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amy.rosenberg@fd.com      
  
Laila Danesh
+44 (0) 702 962 1517
laila.danesh@fd.com

MEDIA CONTACT BELTONE:
Iman Hammam
+2 010 160 0422
firstegyptday@beltonefinancial.com

© Press Release 2008