Qatar National Bank receives regulatory approval to acquire SocGen Egypt

Qatar National Bank (QNB) has received the approval from Egypt's central bank to acquire a majority stake in National Societe Generale Bank (NSGB) in Egypt.

Under terms of the agreement, QNB will purchase around 77.2% stake in NSGB in a deal valued at nearly $1.97bn, as reported by the Bloomberg.

The deal will help the French lender to realize a net gain of approximately €350m ($458m) supporting its capital requirements ahead of Basel III implementation, while enabling the Qatari lender to expand footprint in the Egyptian market.

QNB has already started discussions with Egyptian government to acquire the unit, and is likely to close the transaction within the next two months.

The acquisition is part of the bank's strategy to expand presence in the Middle East and Africa as well as Turkey and Morocco, while reducing dependency on domestic market.