Egypt's EFG Hermes has received approval from Lebanon's central bank to sell a 40 percent stake in Credit Libanais, the company said on Sunday.

EFG Hermes's board in March agreed to sell a 40 percent stake in Credit Libanais to Arab and Lebanese investors at $33 per share, along with plans to sell its remaining shares by May next year.

EFG Hermes bought the stake in 2010 for $542 million, saying at the time that the deal would aid expansion into Lebanon and the Levant and help broaden its product range. But since then the civil war in Syria has had a big impact on Lebanese banks.