Abraaj Investment once again raises offer for Egyptian snack maker Bisco Misr

Middle East's largest private equity firm Abraaj Investment Management, yesterday raised its buyout offer for Egyptian snack maker Bisco Misr to Egyptian £84.66 pounds ($12) per share, trumping a latest bid from the world's biggest breakfast cereal maker Kellogg Co.

United Arab Emirates-based Abraaj had initially tabled an Egyptian £73.91 pounds per share offer for Bisco Misr, but Kellogg has since twice outbid Abraaj. Its latest offer was Egyptian £82.2 pounds per share.

Bisco Misr had earlier agreed to let Michigan-based Kellogg conduct due diligence prior to acquiring at least 51 per cent of the company. Bisco Misr had also allowed Abraaj and Saudi Arabia's Savola Group to conduct due diligence.

Founded in 1957, Bisco Misr was established to supply the Egyptian army and the national schools with a quick energy snack for soldiers in the barracks as well as the school children on the playground.

Since then, the company has become one of the country's main providers of baked goods and confectionary biscuit Luxe alongside a range of cakes and wafers,

Bisco Misr has three facilities, one in Cairo and two in Alexandria, where it produces Luxe biscuit, cakes, wafers, wafer biscuits, corn flakes, Kahk and ghorayeba (seasonal confectionaries). It posted profits of Egyptian £5.5 million pounds in the second quarter of the current year.