Banque Misr

Banque Misr (Arabic: بنك مصر‎) is an Egyptian bank co-founded by industrialist Joseph Aslan Cattaui Pasha and economist Talaat Harb Pasha in 1920. The government of the United Arab Republic nationalized the bank in 1960. The bank has branch offices in all of Egypt's governorates, and currency exchange and work permit offices for foreign workers in Egypt.

Banque Misr S.A.E.
بنك مصر ش.م.م.
TypeGovernment-owned corporation
IndustryBanking and financial services
Founded13 April 1920 (1920-04-13)
FounderJoseph Cattaui, Talaat Harb
Headquarters
Cairo
,
Egypt
Number of locations
590
Key people
Mohamed Mahmoud Eletreby (CEO and Chairman)
Services
[1]
  • EGP 1.161 Billion (2013)
  • EGP 709 million (2012)
Total assets
  • EGP 218.2 Billion (2013)
  • EGP 187.8 Billion (2012)
Websitewww.banquemisr.com
For Egypt's central bank, please see Central Bank of Egypt

History

Joseph Cattaui and Talaat Harb co-founded Banque Misr in 1920.[2] Talaat had published books in 1907 and 1911 calling for the founding of a national bank with Egyptian financing. (The National Bank of Egypt was British-owned, and all the other banks in Egypt were owned by foreigners.) Harb modeled Bank Misr's operations on those of Deutsche Orientbank with which he was familiar due to his friendship with the owner of a Sephardi Jewish bank, Banque Suarès. Harb established Banque Misr and its companies on the basis of certain concepts: all its dealings were in Arabic, Egyptians operated the bank, and the bank restricted share ownership to Egyptian citizens. Misr's Board of Directors included a number of Sephardic Jews and a Coptic Christian.

In 1926 Bank Misr established its first foreign subsidiary, Banque Misr-La France, to serve Egyptian tourists to France. Four years later, Bank Misr joined with Banque Essadine, in Lebanon, to form the joint-venture Banque Misr-Syrie-Liban. This bank then absorbed Banque Ezzeddine & Adib (Izz al-Din) in Tripoli.

Banque Misr failed in 1939, but was then reorganized.

Talaat Harb and Medhat Yakan at the opening of a new branch of Banque Misr in 1935.

In 1960 Gamal Nasser nationalised all banks in Egypt, foreign and domestic, including the four largest domestic banks — National Bank of Egypt, Banque Misr, Bank of Alexandria and Banque du Caire. The next year, Syria nationalized all banks operating in the country, including Banque Misr's operations there.

  • 1963 In Libya, Banque Misr created Nahda Arabian Bank to hold its branches there.
  • 1971 Banque Misr absorbed Banque de Port-Said. Banque de Port-Said had been created in 1960 to hold the Egyptian operations of several foreign bank, including Ionian Bank, Ottoman Bank, Banque Belge et Internationale en Egypte and Bank of Tokyo.
  • 1975 Liberalization of foreign entry led several Egyptian banks to establish joint venture banks with foreign banks.
  • 1976 Banque Misr established Misr International Bank (MIBank) with Banque Misr owning 44%, First Chicago 20%, Europartners 10.5%, UBAF Bank 8.5%, Banco di Roma 7.375%, and Mitsui Bank 2.625%.
Misr established Misr American International Bank (MAIB) with Bank of America.
Misr established Misr Exterior Bank in a joint venture with Banco Exterior de España.
  • 1977 Bank MISR established Misr Romanian Bank, together with a number of Romanian banks. Misr initially owned 51%, with Banca Romana de Comert Exterior owning 19%, and other Romanian banks such as Banca Agricola and Banca Comerciala Romana owning the rest.
  • 1988 Banque de Caire took a 17% in MIBank, and Misr took over First Chicago's 20% stake.
  • 1995 Banque Misr joined with Bank of Alexandria, National Bank of Egypt, Banque du Caire and Kato Aromatics to found Cairo International Bank in Uganda.
  • 1996 MIBank sold 10% of its shares to the Egyptian public in an initial public offering. The remaining shareholders were Misr with some 55%, Banca di Roma International (10%), British Arab Commercial Bank (8.5%), Commerzbank and Banco Central Hispano Americano (jointly 7.875%) and Sakura Bank (2.625%).
  • 2004 Banque Misr merged in Misr Exterior Bank.
  • 2005 National Société Générale Bank (NSGB), a joint venture between National Bank of Egypt and France's Société Générale, acquired a majority stake in Misr International Bank (MIBank), making NSGB Egypt's biggest private sector bank. Arab African International Bank (AAIB) acquired Misr America International Bank (MAIB). Lebanon's Blom Bank increased its stake in Romanian-Egyptian joint venture Misr Romania Bank to 97% by purchasing an 84% stake.

References
  1. ar: youm7.com: بنك مصر يحقق أعلى أرباح في تاريخه بـ3.383 مليار جنيه
  2. Earl L. Sullivan (1 January 1986). Women in Egyptian Public Life. Syracuse University Press. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-8156-2354-0. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
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