Originally conceived in 2005 to provide financial advisory and private equity services, Pharos Holding has since evolved and expanded rapidly into a full-fledged investment bank, providing a spectrum of financial services to institutions and individuals in Egypt and the wider region.
Pharos Holding is a Cairo based full-service investment bank with a thriving investment banking, private equity, asset management, securities brokerage, and operations backed by world-class research.
Pharos Investment Banking cemented its status early on by closing deals worth EGP 1.2 billion in its first six months of operation.
Among its early achievements:
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The sell-side broker for Abraaj Capital’s purchase of Egyptian Fertilizer Co.
- he buy-side adviser in the management buyout of retail financing firm Contact Cars.
- Solvay’s acquisition of Alexandria Sodium Carbonate Co.
By the end of 2011, the company had closed deals worth EGP 5.2 billion, including M&A and capital-raising activities in a wide range of sectors, among them chemicals and fertilisers, consumer finance, telecommunications, food and beverage, education, banking, real estate and building materials.
Sphinx Private Equity Management has been acquired by Pharos Holding in 2009; Sphinx is a leading Cairo based private equity Management Company with over USD 250 million in funds under management and a proven track record of investing in medium-sized companies. Sphinx was established in 2004 by Citadel Capital, the leading private equity firm in the Middle East and Africa with Marianne Ghali for the purpose of managing mid cap buyout funds in Egypt. Today Sphinx manages the Grandview Investment Holdings Fund and the Sphinx Turnaround fund sponsored by the IFC and the European Investment Bank. Additionally, the Sphinx team manages the Karnak Investment Fund and the University Educational Endowment Funds through Citadel Capital portfolio company Pharos.
Pharos Asset management was licensed in February 2008 and now manages EGP 700 million of institutional portfolios and high net worth. Pharos Investment Fund Co. launched a EGP 25.0 million equity fund (Pharos I) in July 2009, which is managed by Pharos Asset Management.
Pharos Securities Brokerage is a top ranked brokerage firm on the Egyptian Stock Exchange (EGX), achieving ninth rank in turnover on the EGX within a year of starting commercial operations in late 2006, a standing that was sustained in 2008. During 2008, the brokerage division had obtained licences for margin and intra-day trading as well as bookkeeping.
Since Q1 2009, Pharos Securities has risen and maintained fifth rank in both over the counter (OTC) and official market transactions. With four fully operational branches, the securities division currently commands a 6% share of local market transactions. Pharos Securities ranked third on the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchanges (CASE) for overall market turnover in 2010 and despite the political turmoil resulting from the Arab Youth uprising in Egypt and the region which took its toll on the Egyptian economy and capital market, Pharos Securities Brokerage maintained its position among the top five brokerage firms in Egypt in 2011.
The group’s divisions are supported by a proficient research department that adheres to rigorous international standards. Qualified financial analysts and economists regularly produce a variety of publications designed to enrich clients’ knowledge and expertise in the Egyptian market. The research offering includes company reports, sector studies, technical analysis and periodical overviews of the monetary, fiscal and economic conditions of the country.
Pharos Research, in partnership with MSCI Barra, launched a 43-constituent index, the Pharos Egypt Index, in January 2008 to track locally listed companies across nine sub-sector indices.
Pharos Holding for Financial Investments is the majority owner of: Pharos Brokerage, Pharos Asset Management, Pharos Investment Banking and the private equity firm Sphinx Egypt which was acquired in 2009.
Pharos' ownership is held by its top management in addition to stakes held by regional private equity leader Citadel Capital and a group of co-investors from Egypt and the GCC.
