Egyptian pound rises above EGP 50 to the dollar for first time in 9 months

Nora Abdelhamid , Tuesday 3 Mar 2026

The Egyptian pound weakened further on Tuesday, with the US dollar surpassing EGP 50 at four banks for the first time in nine months, according to rates posted at the close of business (COB).

Egyptian pound and US dollar banknotes. AFP

The highest quoted rate reached EGP 50.15 for buying and EGP 50.25 for selling at Suez Canal Bank and Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait, up about EGP 0.9, or 1.9 percent, from Sunday’s EGP 49.17 and EGP 49.27, respectively. At the National Bank of Kuwait, the dollar rose by roughly EGP 1, or 2 percent, from EGP 49.15.

Compared with last Thursday, the dollar climbed by around EGP 2.2, or 4.6 percent, at Suez Canal Bank and Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait, and by EGP 2.3, or 4.8 percent, at National Bank of Kuwait, where it had stood at EGP 47.84 for buying and EGP 47.94 for selling.

The rise in the USD comes after US and Israeli strikes on Iran and retaliatory attacks across the Middle East, including Oman, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, which have heightened geopolitical tensions and weighed on regional currencies.

By midday on Tuesday, about eight banks were quoting the dollar above EGP 50 on the selling side, while buying rates hovered around EGP 49. Those included Credit Agricole Egypt, Commercial International Bank (CIB), QNB Alahli, National Bank of Egypt (NBE), Bank of Alexandria, Banque Misr, and Egyptian Arab Land Bank.

According to the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), the dollar stood at EGP 49.82 for buying and EGP 49.92 for selling at Tuesday’s close.

State-owned lenders NBE and Banque Misr, along with private-sector CIB, quoted EGP 49.83 for buying and EGP 49.93 for selling at the close, while Banque du Caire (BDC) posted slightly higher rates of EGP 49.91 and EGP 50.

Other currencies

Among other currencies, the euro was largely unchanged at EGP 57.7 for buying and EGP 57.8 for selling, while the British pound rose to EGP 66.1 and EGP 66.2.

The Saudi riyal gained EGP 0.2 to EGP 13.27 for buying and EGP 13.3 for selling, following an overnight Iranian attack on the US embassy in Riyadh.

The Kuwaiti dinar rose by about EGP 2, or 1.29 percent, to EGP 162.78 for buying and EGP 163.29 for selling, up from EGP 160.7 and EGP 161.3.

Rates for the Omani riyal, Bahraini dinar, and Jordanian dinar also increased overnight.