Cairo – Mubasher: Bank Audi has started due diligence to buy National Bank of Greece’s (NBG) unit in Egypt, a banking source said on Wednesday.

The due diligence process will be completed by the end of this month, the source, who asked not to mention his name, told Reuters.

NBG Egypt has 18 branches across the North African state, according to the bank’s official website.

In January, sources told Almal newspaper that Bank Audi announced it was considering acquiring the branches of NBG Egypt.

The sources noted that this acquisition would be closed within the framework of the Lebanese lender’s expansion plan in Egypt, the Arab world's most populous country.