In March, the CBE lifted the spending limit it put previously on foreign currency credit cards to face credit card exploitation for cash withdrawals abroad.

The US dollar shortage crisis Egypt has suffered for over two years has prompted banks to limit domestic transactions to $250 monthly to reduce pressure on foreign currency reserves.

Banks have also expanded the withdrawals and purchase limits on cards used abroad.

In addition, many banks have completely stopped cash withdrawals and purchases made by debit cards outside the country.

Customers also had to inform banks of their travel to open and activate the maximum credit card limit.

In recent years, Egypt has been making many efforts to attract foreign direct investments (FDIs) to ensure the flow of foreign currency into the country.

These efforts yielded the $35 billion Ras El-Hekma deal, the largest FDI in Egypt's history.

Moreover, the government plans to increase the private sector's investments to 60-65 percent and raise the FDI's annual growth rate to 14 percent in 2030.

Furthermore, Minister of International Cooperation Rania Al-Mashat announced in June the mobilization of $2 billion from international financial institutions (IFIs) and multilateral and bilateral development partners to support the budget and promote structural reforms.

According to the statement, the CBE increased the daily limit for local currency cash withdrawals from banks to EGP 250,000 instead of EGP 150,000, and from ATMs to EGP 30,000 instead of EGP 20,000, on 15 April.

However, the limits on foreign currency withdrawals are left for each bank to decide according to its policy and after consolidation with its board of directors.