Bank of Alexandria says activity positive after reopening

CAIRO - Mahmoud Abdellatif, the head of Bank of Alexandria, said Monday that banking transactions were more positive than expected after the bank reopened this week, regional news network al-Arabiya reported.

The amount of cash deposited at the bank was greater than withdrawals Sunday, its first day of operation after a week-long closure because of nationwide anti-government protests, he said.

Money transfers out of the country were less than expected and were mostly related to trade activity, Abdellatif added.

The Bank of Alexandria is one of Egypt’s largest banks, with a market share of about seven percent.

It became the first fully state-owned bank to be privatised when it was sold to Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo in 2006.