What do you see as the main points that differentiate Soliman, Hashish & Partners from your competitors?

Mohamed Hashish: Soliman, Hashish & Partners (SHP) is the only law firm in Egypt that works exclusively with well-structured multinational companies within various practice areas, such as Corporate, Mergers & Acquisitions, Banking & Finance, Telecoms, Media and Technology (TMT), Energy & Electricity and Public Procurement. SHP’s clientele constitutes over 15 Fortune 500 companies. We have committed ourselves to the highest level of business ethics and international standards, and endeavour to ensure responsiveness, to the extent of providing innovative legal solutions to complex legal issues, as well as accessibility in the interests of our clients. SHP has successfully gained the trust of high calibre clientele and represents leading multinational clients in Egypt’s largest mega projects.

Which practices do you see growing in the next 12 months? What are the drivers behind that?

Frederic Soliman: Egypt is a growing and attractive market for investors, especially when it comes to finance (including green finance). Due to the hard work of the Egyptian government over the past few years in improving the business environment in the country, Egypt has managed to attract more foreign direct investment (FDI) in multiple sectors. One of the main practices which we see growing in the next 12 months is the green energy sector.

Mohamed Hashish: Although Fintech is one of the sectors which has recently emerged, the Egyptian government continues to promote financial inclusion and the digitization of the financial sector in the country. Several initiatives by the CBE, the issuance of laws and regulations governing Fintech in Egypt and the digitalization of procedures and practices within the Egyptian market have indicated the growth as well as the increased importance of Fintech as a practice area. A shift away from a cash-based system towards electronic payment methods and the necessity of stimulating ease of foreign investment in Egypt, as a result of rapid technological advancements, has created a strong space for Fintech in the Egyptian market.

What's the main change you've made in the firm that will benefit clients?

Frederic Soliman: We moved our head office to New Cairo in order to be in a more strategic geographic location with respect to our clients. We have also been doing our best efforts since SHP’s establishment to keep developing our firm.

Mohamed Hashish: SHP only hires the most highly qualified candidates in the market and maintains an environment of collaboration amongst all members of our team. In addition, we work in collaboration with key international players to benefit our clients and provide them with the innovative solutions to the most complex legal issues.

Is technology changing the way you interact with your clients, and the services you can provide them?

Mohamed Hashish: Technology is a crucial part of maintaining our work effectively and efficiently, particularly with our large international client base who are not always based in Egypt. Accordingly, and to accommodate without negatively impacting our ability to act in the clients’ interests, we use the best available technology to increase our efficiency and performance at SHP and provide our clients with the highest quality of legal services, regardless of where they are in the world. SHP uses one of the world’s most advanced law firm management systems to ensure that everyone at the firm and the clients are connected when needed.

Can you give us a practical example of how you have helped a client to add value to their business?

Frederic Soliman: SHP has excellent knowledge of Egyptian law but focuses on working with international clients. Since foreign investment inflows have been steadily increasing since 2011, and the Egyptian market may be challenging to navigate with regards to international entities, we pride ourselves in offering useful and

informative legal advice and counsel to those seeking to establish themselves in the market to ensure our clients maintain the strictest compliance with laws and regulations in conducting their business activities in Egypt. As a practical example, we assisted one of our clients in the cement industry in reaching a settlement with the Egyptian Government with regards to their business in Egypt in the conclusion of a quarry agreement with the Egyptian Company for Mining, Management and Exploitation of Quarries and Salt Works.

Are clients looking for stability and strategic direction from their law firms - where do you see the firm in three years’ time?

Mohamed Hashish: At SHP, we are continuously growing, having increased our client base at an exponential rate since our establishment, building the trust of some of the world’s largest and most prestigious companies, as well as maintaining strong relationships with leading international law firms across the globe. We believe that the bottom of one mountain is the top of the next and multiple clients have requested us to offer them full or part-time secondee legal counsels to cover the entire MENA region. Therefore, in three years’ time, we our aiming to continue to grow and branch out our operations to other regions throughout the Middle East, to further develop our global reach and be in an optimal position to provide high-quality legal services to a plethora of clients operating in a wide range of practice areas and countries.