Tareq Aziz, lawyer to Egypt's fugitive business tycoon Hussein Salem, announced Saturday that the prosecutor-general is expected to respond to an offer for settlement within hours.

Salem's defence team had made a settlement offer to the north Cairo court attorney general earlier this week, which entails giving up 75 percent of Salem's wealth in Egypt and 55 percent of his wealth in Spain, where he currently resides, and in Switzerland.

The deal has been referred to the prosecutor general to give his approval.

"It is not possible now to determine the exact amount he will be giving up, as it will still have to be estimated according to market prices," Aziz told Ahram Online, dismissing circulated reports that Salem's wealth was estimated at LE11.2 billion (around $1.6 billion)

Salem, who fled Egypt during the January 25 Revolution and was a close associate of ousted former president Hosni Mubarak, said he is willing to pay any amount of money set by the prosecution.

In March 2012, Salem was handed a 15-year sentence in absentia for illegally acquiring public property.He was also sentenced to 15 years in jail in June 2012 for squandering public funds in a gas deal with Israel, before the Cassation Court ordered a retrial in March.

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