Arab Finance: The Egyptian private equity sector has entered a "delivery phase" in 2026, characterized by deeper integration with the government’s privatization agenda and a surge in institutional interest.

Egypt’s private equity market was valued at approximately $2.75 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.67% through 2033, as per IMARC forecast.

At the forefront of this evolution is BPE Partners, an Egyptian powerhouse that has successfully navigated nearly two decades of market cycles.

In this exclusive interview, Mostafa El-Anwar, CEO of BPE Partners, shares the firm’s philosophy, the strategic institutionalization of founder-led businesses like Gourmet, and why "growth" remains the ultimate attraction for investors in Egypt’s 100-million-strong consumer market.

1-Can you give our readers a quick overview of BPE Partners' evolution from Beltone Private Equity to its current structure as a subsidiary of B Investments?

Established in 2006, BPE Partners (BPE) is a diversified, well-established private equity firm with an Egypt-focused investment strategy. We are active investors who focus on establishing successful partnerships with reputable business professionals and capable management teams to jointly implement effective value-creation plans.

BPE houses a seasoned on-the-ground investment team that capitalizes on its extensive knowledge of the local market, as well as its existing personal and professional network of relationships to gain access to proprietary deal flow. Over the course of our history, we have successfully executed 24 investments and 13 exits, including some of the most notable value-creation transactions in the Egyptian market.

Our Egypt-focused investment strategy is rooted in our deep understanding and knowledge of the local market, supported by the country’s large and diversified economy and a young, growing population. Egypt’s market size allows us to build businesses to meaningful scale, while its young population and rising urban consumption create sustained demand in consumer-based sectors such as food & beverage, pharma retail, healthcare, and non-banking financial services.

Furthermore, many strong local companies are still founder-led and lack access to structured capital and governance, which creates a natural role for private equity as a partner in institutionalization and growth.

2- With over $230 million deployed across 24 portfolio investments and 13 exits, what does BPE Partners' track record tell investors about your approach to value creation?

Our track record reflects a hands-on approach to value creation that goes beyond capital deployment. We focus on operational improvement, strategic expansion, and governance enhancement.

Our exit history exhibits our ability to exit portfolio companies through multiple avenues. We have successfully exited investments through trade sales and public market listings. We have also sold our stakes to a broad spectrum of buyers, including local and international investors, as well as both strategic and financial institutions. This flexibility reflects our focus on preparing companies for a wide range of exit scenarios from the outset.

In the case of Gourmet, value creation has centered on expanding the store network, creating a corporate governance framework, driving profitability, and aligning the business with public market standards. Our exits demonstrate that disciplined execution and timing are as important as initial investment selection.

3- What key criteria do you use to identify "best-in-class" opportunities in Egypt's private equity landscape?

We look for market leaders or challengers in fragmented sectors, strong management teams, and business models with scalability. We also prioritize companies that can transition from founder-led operations into institutional companies.

Gourmet met all these criteria: a strong consumer brand, unique product offering, solid unit economics, and a scalable business model, making it well-suited for both private equity ownership and eventual listing.

4-Egypt boasts resilient fundamentals like favorable demographics, natural resources, and strategic location. How do these factors make it stand out as an investment destination compared to other emerging markets?

We believe that one of Egypt’s key advantages lies in the scale and structure of its population. With over 100 million people and a young demographic profile, the country benefits from a large and growing consumer base that drives sustained demand across essential consumer-based sectors such as food and beverage, pharma retail, healthcare, and non-banking financial services.

5-How does BPE Partners leverage its on-the-ground local knowledge and extensive business networks to source and execute deals?

BPE Partners’ sourcing and execution capabilities are built on deep industry knowledge and long-standing relationships within Egypt’s business community. Our team maintains close ties with entrepreneurs, family-owned businesses, regulators, and advisors, which allows us to access opportunities through proprietary channels rather than competitive processes.

Furthermore, our team brings diverse backgrounds across multiple sectors, including consumer, healthcare, financial services, infrastructure, and industrials. This breadth of experience enhances our ability to evaluate opportunities from both a strategic and operational perspective.

Combined with our local presence, this enables us to structure transactions effectively and work closely with management teams to implement growth and transformation plans.

6-In which sectors or industries do your 24 portfolio companies primarily operate, and can you share a standout example of growth and profitability post-investment?

BPE’s portfolio reflects our opportunistic investment approach, focused on identifying strong businesses operating in growing and attractive sectors where we can add strategic and operational value.

Currently, our investments span several sectors, including food and beverage, pharma retail, e-payments, real estate, non-banking financial services, healthcare, and renewable energy.

Previously, we were also invested in a broad range of industries, including IT systems integration, downstream oil and gas, tourism, engineering services, and others. This breadth demonstrates our ability to identify promising opportunities across diverse sectors, implement our value-creation plan, execute successful exits, and deliver solid returns to our shareholders.

An example of this value creation is our investment in Gourmet. Since we invested in the company in 2018, its revenues grew from EGP 330 million to EGP 3 billion in 2025, while its total retail space has increased by more than tenfold. This growth has been driven by a combination of branch expansion, operational improvements, and stronger governance, positioning the company for its next phase of growth as a publicly listed company.

7-What sets BPE Partners apart from other private equity firms targeting Egypt?

BPE Partners is one of the oldest private equity firms in Egypt, with deep local knowledge and a long track record of executing some of the market’s most notable transactions. Our on-the-ground team combines extensive industry expertise with diverse backgrounds across multiple sectors and strong networks throughout the business community.

Beyond deal execution, we are a hands-on investor, working closely with our partners on strategy, operations, and governance. This combination allows us to consistently identify attractive opportunities and drive meaningful value creation in our portfolio companies.

8-For investors weighing decisions in Egypt, what risks—such as geopolitical or regulatory factors—do you actively mitigate, and how has your track record demonstrated resilience?

We mitigate risk through a rigorous investment process, disciplined governance, and optimized deal structuring. A key part of our strategy is focusing on defensive sectors with a strong growth outlook, industries that are minimally affected by macroeconomic challenges and benefit from the country’s demographics, such as consumer staples, healthcare, and others. This approach provides resilience during periods of volatility while still capturing structural growth.

Our track record demonstrates the effectiveness of this approach. For example, during peak COVID-19 lockdowns, Gourmet was the only supermarket with its own e-commerce platform via both a mobile application and website, enabling the business to grow substantially despite market disruptions.

Furthermore, during import restrictions in 2022 and 2023, Gourmet leveraged its two manufacturing facilities to expand production of its own “Produced by Gourmet” portfolio, mitigating supply shortages and maintaining growth when imported products were difficult to source.

This example illustrates how disciplined investment structuring, combined with operational readiness and active management, allows us to build resilient businesses capable of navigating challenging environments while sustaining growth.

 9-Looking ahead, what emerging sectors or opportunities in Egypt excite you most for BPE Partners' next investment vehicles?

Looking ahead, we are particularly focused on consumer-driven businesses, healthcare, and companies with the potential to expand beyond Egypt. We aim to support businesses that can scale regionally, as we have successfully done with Giza Systems and Basata E-Payments.

10-With Gourmet heading towards an IPO, could you give us an idea of your experience with that investment?

We invested in Gourmet in 2018, at a time when the company already had a very strong brand and a unique product offering in the Egyptian market. The company needed capital to expand its store network, enhance its manufacturing capabilities, and further invest in its e-commerce platform, as well as strategic guidance to institutionalize the company and build a sustainable business.

Over the course of our investment, we more than doubled the store network to reach 21 stores across Egypt, expanded the total retail area from 1,110 to 10,600 square meters, and grew revenues by more than ninefold to approximately EGP 3 billion in 2025.

These efforts, combined with growing public market appetite for consumer-focused businesses like Gourmet, operating in a sector currently not represented on the EGX, have naturally paved the way for this IPO.

11- What comes next post-IPO, and why are you retaining a majority stake?

We are very pleased with this investment and with Gourmet’s performance over the past several years. The company has delivered strong results, and we continue to see significant upside and future potential.

As a result, we are retaining the majority of our stake post-IPO to remain aligned with the company’s long-term growth trajectory.

Looking ahead, we expect Gourmet to continue expanding its retail footprint, with plans to open approximately 15 new stores over the next five years, while further strengthening its brand, operations, and market positioning.

12-As CEO, what one piece of advice would you give to business investors—Egyptian or international—considering private equity allocations in the Egyptian market today?

My advice would be to focus on growth. The Egyptian market is supported by strong macroeconomic fundamentals and a diversified set of sectors driven by the needs of a large and growing consumer base.

Targeting opportunities that combine significant growth potential with the necessary fundamentals needed to capture that demand will deliver strong returns to shareholders and prove more resilient in the long run.

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