The new board of directors of the Egyptian Arab Land Bank has started to develop the bank’s strategy for the next three years, according to Amr Kamal, the chairperson of the bank.
The board of directors of the bank held its first meeting on Thursday to discuss the current situation of the bank and the most important files to be worked on in the coming period, as well as the formation and distribution of bank committees, where each member of the board will oversee a specific committee in application of governance.
According to Kamal, the board of directors of the bank pledged to restore its banking and historical position and place in the ranks of major banks internally and externally.
The board of directors of the bank includes Amr Kamal as the chairperson, and Medhat Kamar and Ahmed Amr as deputies.
The board also includes six non-executive members, Hala Basyouni, Mahmoud Abdel Bari, Mohamed Badra, Mohamed Maher, Hassan Mustafa, and Eslam Khedr, in addition to Magy Metwally (the secretary of the council) and Heba Tarady.
Kamal had earlier disclosed that he would start his work at the bank by forming a number of committees to prepare a full study of the bank as well as work on restructuring the bank financially to get rid of bad debts, improve asset management, and strengthen the bank’s capital base.
Kamal pointed out that the new management of the bank succeeded during the first days to take over the responsibility of the bank in preparing a comprehensive study of the conditions of the bank and the size of losses and problems suffered by them as well as the financial and administrative situation.
The bank suffers from a number of problems, the most important of which is the inflation of its default debts portfolio, which amounts to EGP 6bn, most of it in the tourism sector, as well as a large portfolio of unutilised assets, which the bank has been seeking to dispose of for several years.
According to Kamal, there is full support for the new management of the bank by the Central Bank of Egypt in the plan to develop the bank and restore its leadership position. He pointed out that the bank’s management is developing a clear plan for development and then sends monthly reports to the CBE on what has been achieved.
Kamal has 35 years of experience in banking and investment, where he worked in several local and international banks, including Chase Bank Egypt, Bank of America in Egypt and London, Banque Saudi Fransi in Jeddah, National Bank of Bahrain in Manama, Egyptian American Bank, and Arab African International Bank.
