Egypt's central bank said it was offering to sell $75 million to banks on Monday at its second foreign currency auction, with a maximum of $11 million per bank.

The auctions are part of a shift in currency policy announced on Saturday and designed to conserve the country's foreign reserves, which the central bank said had fallen to a critical level.

The bank also offered $75 million at its maiden auction on Sunday.

It accepted bids worth $74.9 million, with a cut-off price for dollars of 6.2425 Egyptian pounds. This represented a substantial weakening of the pound, which was earlier bid in the interbank market on Sunday at 6.185 to the dollar.