On Monday morning, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) increased the value of the US dollar against the Egyptian pound in the official market to EGP 8.85. The value on Sunday was EGP 7.7301. As per the decision, the official sale price of the US dollar in banks will increase to EGP 8.95, up from EGP 7.83. The CBE also issued on Monday an exceptional auction of $200m to banks to cover the import requirements of basic commodities. Parallel to this, state-owned banks began issuing on Monday three-year certificates of deposits (CD), which will be offered over a period of three months. The CDs will be sold in US dollars and converted to Egyptian pounds with a 15% interest rate and a three-year maturation period. The sale of the CDs is contingent upon the initial certificate purchase being conducted in US dollars. The CBE's decision aims to bolster foreign currency reserves by attracting savings deposits from Egyptian citizens in US dollars.
