Talks with Qatar for US$2 bn in financial aid

Hamdi Samir, head of the Finance Ministry’s Public Debt Department, has denied reports by the Turkish Anadolu news agency on Monday that talks with Qatar to transfer additional funds from a US$2 billion Qatari deposit to the Central Bank of Egypt have broken down without explanation.

The agency had attributed the report to unknown sources.

“We are offering bonds of US$2 billion to Qatar in August and September through the Irish Stock Exchange,” Samir said.

Qatar, the largest financier of Egypt since deposed President Mohamed Morsy came to power a year ago, provided Egypt with US$8 billion, of which US$5.5 billion was in the form of bonds, while the remaining aid was added to foreign reserves.

According to the Egyptian Finance Ministry, the government offered US$3.5 billion in bonds from the Qatari financial package to Qatar National Bank, of which US$2.5 billion was offered in May for an annual interest rate of 4.25 percent, and US$1 billion early this July for an annual interest rate of 3.5 percent.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm