This was another tough year where our resolve as a business was once again tested. Despite all our hopes, the pandemic continues to live with us, which is an unfortunate but real circumstance. Adapting to life where new variants are becoming a common occurrence is something we must all learn to live with. This is certainly not an easy endeavor, but it is also the reason I am filled with a sense of gratitude and pride when I look back at 2021. The challenges that we have all been handed from a business perspective were too many to recount, but EFG Hermes stepped up, took them on, and delivered on almost every single front.

While they continue to be the pillars of all of our strategic decisions, I will not bore you with our accomplishments broken down along our 6Ps of People, Products, Presence, Positioning, Profitability, and Public responsibility. However, I would like to stress that, other than deliberately pressing pause on geographical expansions and my desire to see better profitability metrics (both in terms of growth and return metrics) than the ones we have so far realized, I am generally happy with what we have achieved when it comes to the remaining 6 Ps. It was another year where our sell side, buy side, and NBFI platforms pushed the bar higher in terms of our expectations and those of our different stakeholders. At the same time, our extraordinary support functions kept our machine flawlessly running through another tough year.

As for the future, it is always tough to predict what the new year will bring; however, I am cautiously optimistic. The sell side business should see increased operational leverage on the brokerage front (inclusive of research and products), if the growth in volumes we are currently seeing in some of our core markets is sustained, and as the Investment Banking division continues the phenomenal gain of market share in debt, equity, and M&A transactions in Egypt, UAE, and KSA. I also see some upside risks in our buy side business with the potential second close of the Vortex IV fund and the FIM SPAC, among many others. Apart from the continued growth we are seeing across the different segments, the NBFI platform promises to have a bright 2022 with a number of positive developments on Tanmeyah, EFG Hermes Corp-Solutions, and our BNPL platform, valU.

The acquisition of a majority stake in the Arab Investment Bank (aiBANK) comes with its own set of challenges, but promises to be another transformational step in our journey. We have hired an excellent, young, and highly energetic CEO and are in the final stages of bringing on board a number of other high-caliber senior hires, that should help us considerably upgrade the operations and returns profile of the bank during the coming years. More importantly, our teams are already in constant dialogues, trying to explore opportunities to cross sell and to cooperate on business ventures that are equally beneficial to both institutions. The impact of this acquisition might not be felt in the short term, but I remain highly confident that it should become an integral contributor to EFG Hermes’ revenues and profits in the medium term, while immediately expanding the suite of products we offer our clients.

All in all, I am proud of the massive and very difficult pivot in our Firm’s business model. In 2013, EFG Hermes was a largely Egypt-focused investment bank with an investment in a Lebanese commercial bank. Today, we have a FEM-focused business with a growing track record across most markets we operate in. Our Lebanese bank investment has been swapped for an investment in a bank in a core market that promises to hold significant revenue synergies with our existing investment bank and NBFI business. As we go into the new year, I am increasingly hopeful that the years ahead should bring more growth in our different financial indicators, as well as multiple opportunities for realizing massive value on some of the great brands our Firm has built during the past few years.

However, as we have witnessed many times before, our plans can be easily derailed by factors that we have little to no control over. This is unfortunate, but it is another characteristic of the environments we currently operate in. We therefore have to stay vigilant, proactive, and multiple steps ahead of our competition in different markets and across our product segments. It is this distinguishing DNA that has helped us grow and achieve so much during the past period and it is the one that should drive our actions going forward. I remain proud that EFG Hermes has a team of employees that take every step while ensuring the best interests of its stakeholders are safeguarded. EFG Hermes will remain well prepared to meet and deal with the challenges of the coming period as we have during the past.

Karim Awad

Group Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Executive Committee, EFG Hermes Holding