The authority has also completed plans to update existing coins in circulation, especially the one-pound coin, by improving its specifications to enhance quality, according to the statement.
It will use more cost-effective raw materials that are proportionate to the coin’s value to reduce production costs and prevent illegal melting and trading, the statement said, citing Gamal Hussein, the authority head.
Other coins, such as the quarter-pound (25 piastres) and half-pound (50 piastres), will continue to circulate.
These steps are part of a plan to balance the economic and technical aspects of coin production, Hussein said.
They also aim to increase the supply of coins and improve the availability of change, particularly in densely populated areas with high daily transaction volumes, while improving the efficiency of coin denominations.
This comes after National Authority for Tunnels (NAT) Chairman Tarek Gewaily said in December 2025 that the authority faced a daily shortage of about EGP 300,000 in small denominations, prompting it to raise the metro ticket price to EGP 10 from EGP 8.
The shortage was caused by limited supplies of imported raw materials needed for coins, leading to delays in minting. It also led to an expansion in electronic payment options for some metro lines.
Train ticket prices and some metro fares increased again in March, as the NAT and Egyptian National Railways sought to cover operating costs, amid rising global petroleum prices, higher local fuel prices linked to the US–Israeli war on Iran, and repeated increases in electricity prices in recent years.
The last time Egypt updated its currency was in 2023, when the Central Bank of Egypt issued a polymer EGP 20 banknote, following the release of the EGP 10 note in July 2022.
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