Qatar National Bank hires McKinsey to advise on Egypt business strategy

QNB Alahly’s loan growth was 9.6 per cent in 2013, the second-biggest among Egyptian lenders, after rising 2.3 per cent a year earlier.

Qatar National Bank, the nation’s largest lender, hired McKinsey & Co to help formulate a strategy for its Egyptian business as it seeks to boost operations, two people with knowledge of the matter said.

The company is helping the state-controlled lender devise a five-year plan for Qatar National Bank Alahly, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. QNB is working to increase profitability and market share in Egypt, according to one of the people.

QNB bought 97 per cent of the lender in March last year from Société Générale for US$2.45 billion. The Doha-based bank is seeking to expand in Egypt, a country with a population 40-times greater than Qatar’s, even as relations between the two nations deteriorate after the military-backed overthrow of Mohammed Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood government last July.

QNB Alahly’s loan growth was 9.6 per cent last year, the second-biggest among Egyptian lenders, after rising 2.3 per cent in 2012. Net income rose 16 per cent, the biggest gain since 2008, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, while assets rose 21 per cent, the third-highest rate in Egypt after Societe Arabe Internationale de Banque and Union National Bank.

An official at QNB did not immediately return an email and phone call seeking comment. A call to McKinsey’s offices in London after hours was not immediately returned.