​New York — EFG Hermes, the leading investment bank in the Arab world, is introducing the region’s most important listed companies to institutional investors from across North America and Europe at back-to-back events this week. In New York, the EFG Hermes and Auerbach Grayson Manhattan MENA Conference will see two days of one-on-one meetings between top North American institutional investors and C-suite executives from 23 of the largest and most interesting companies from seven Arab nations. That gathering began on Monday, 19 October 2009. The conference, whose theme is “Drilling for Ideas,” is the largest MENA-focused investment forum to take place in the United States. “Middle East and North African markets offer some of the world’s strongest investment opportunities,” said Sherif Cararah, EFG Hermes Securities Brokerage Managing Director. “To identify them, however, you need on-the-ground information and a brokerage partner with the local knowledge and global-standard skills to execute. EFG Hermes is the value-added broker to which institutions turn for their regional trading needs — and the only firm with the reach that allows us to bring two dozen top listed companies to New York.” Just days after the Manhattan MENA Conference, EFG Hermes will host Egypt’s largest companies in sectors including automotive, construction, financial services, real estate and telecom at its Second Annual Egypt Capital Markets Day at the London Stock Exchange on 23 October. “This kind of access to top management of Arab companies is essential before investors abroad effectively allocate capital to local markets. And for leading regional companies, these conferences provide an unparalleled opportunity to interact with institutional fund managers and directly lay out the compelling opportunities in local industries and markets,” Cararah noted. The New York and London events are part of EFG Hermes’ ongoing program of matching global investors with compelling regional opportunities. The firm recently hosted capital markets days at the London Stock Exchange for MENA financial firms as well as for listed Saudi Arabian companies.