Egypt’s wealthiest man Nassef Sawiris contemplates breaking up his business empire

Egypt’s wealthiest man Nassef Sawiris contemplates breaking up his business empire ©provided by Business Insider Africa

Egypt’s richest man, Nassef Sawiris is considering an overhaul of his chemicals and fertiliser conglomerate that could include additional divestitures and the fragmentation of his primary holding. This comes after $7 billion in asset sales over the last two months.

・The 63-year-old billionaire, Nassef Sawiris has expressed his interest in a complete overhaul of his business.

・Transforming the company into a cash-shell entity focused on pursuing acquisitions in new industries is under consideration.

・With his wealth estimated by Forbes at more than $8 billion, Sawiris has built a robust diverse investment portfolio.

The 63-year-old billionaire, whose portfolio includes English football club Aston Villa, expressed his interest in a complete overhaul of the business that forms the cornerstone of his fortune, Dutch-listed chemicals group OCI, Financial Times reported.

In an interview with FT, Sawaris mentioned that one option under consideration is transforming the company into a cash-shell entity focused on pursuing acquisitions in new industries.

What he said:

*“We’re evaluating what we want to do, not just with the money [from the asset sales] but as a team,” he said. “And maybe OCI stays with a piece or two pieces and it becomes a cash cow, and becomes a machine for further investment. We’re quite open-minded.”*

“It doesn’t have to be fertiliser, doesn’t have to be chemicals. If all of OCI is sold, the core team . . . know that we are serial entrepreneurs and we’re going to do something,” he added.

The remarks come in the wake of heightened deal activity at OCI, spurred by pressure from US activist investor Jeff Ubben, as well as within Sawiris’ NNS Group family office.

With his wealth estimated by Forbes at more than $8 billion, Sawiris has quietly built a diverse investment portfolio through NSS, which includes ownership of Aston Villa, as well as stakes in German sportswear giant Adidas and Danish café chain Joe & The Juice.

But OCI, where he holds an almost 40 per cent stake and his family a further 14 per cent, has been his focus for much of the past year.

Earlier in May, OCI’s board approved a strategic review of all business lines as well as its listing venue in the Netherlands after Ubben bought a 5 per cent stake and pressed the group to explore options, including asset sales to improve shareholder returns

By the end of the year, OCI had agreed to sell two fertiliser holdings for $3.6 billion each, to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and US-based Koch Industries.

“We always say that we are builders, not holders,” Sawiris said. “We build assets. But if this asset is worth more to another party than it’s worth in the context of OCI or the public company or of myself, then that is the more deserving owner.”

OCI shares have surged by 50% since reaching a multiyear low before the fertiliser deals in December. Investors are now eager to see how much of the proceeds Sawiris will distribute through dividends and what OCI plans to do with its methanol business and a low-carbon ammonia project in Texas.

Because the fertiliser industry has come under scrutiny for its heavy carbon footprint, Sawiris said OCI was pursuing the production of “blue ammonia”, which can vastly reduce emissions