A Cairo criminal court ordered on Thursday the release of prominent Muslim Brotherhood leader and businessman Hassan Malek on EGP 20,000 bail pending trial on charges of harming the country’s economy and financing the banned Brotherhood group.

The prosecution can appeal to the court’s decision to release Malek on bail.

Egypt's State Security Prosecution referred Malek to trial in 2015 on charges of collecting foreign currency from the Egyptian market and transferring it outside of the country with the aim of harming the national economy. 

Malek was arrested at his home in New Cairo's Fifth Settlement in October 2015, and has been in jail since pending investigations.

All of Malek’s assets have been frozen since September 2014, when the North Cairo Criminal Court upheld a decision by the prosecutor-general to freeze the assets of prominent Muslim Brotherhood leaders. 

Since the 1990s, Malek has been considered one of the most prominent Muslim Brotherhood businessmen, along with his business partner deputy chairman of the Brotherhood in Egypt Khairat El-Shater, who is serving time in prison on various charges.

Malek’s commercial and industrial ventures included textile manufacturing, electrical supplies and furniture.

The Muslim Brotherhood was designated a terrorist organisation by the Egyptian government in November 2013.