CAIRO: Greece s Piraeus Bank raised its stake in Piraeus Bank Egypt, its subsidiary, by 1.9 percent to 95.3 percent by buying shares held by Libya s foreign investment company, Piraeus Bank Egypt said on Thursday.
The Greece-based parent bank paid LE 18 million ($3.1 million) to increase its stake from 93.4 percent, valuing the current holding at LE 477 million.
It is their strategy to acquire a greater stake in the bank, said Mash at Abdel Aziz, head of investor relations at Piraeus Bank Egypt.
The seller was the Libyan government s Arab Company for Foreign Investments, which sold 5.5 percent of the bank to Piraeus Bank for $9.4 million on July 2. By 13:53 GMT, shares in Piraeus Bank Egypt were down 5 percent at LE 26.23 per share.