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Egypt raises bank withdrawal cap during Ramadan

April 23, 2020 at 1:00 am

Portraits of Egyptian Pound notes and coins on 12 October 2016 in Cairo, Egypt. [David Degner/Getty Images]

The Central Bank of Egypt has raised individuals’ cash withdrawal limit during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan through ATM machines, from 5,000 Egyptian pounds to 20,000 Egyptian pounds daily, Head of the Federation of Egyptian Banks Mohamed El-Etreby announced today.

Cash withdrawal through bank tellers has been raised from 10,000 Egyptian pounds to 50,000 Egyptian pounds ($3174) daily, El-Etreby told the state-run Middle East News Agency.

“The same conditions apply to deposits,” he added, noting that the Central Bank made the decision in coordination with the Federation of Egyptian Banks.

El-Etreby is also the head of Banque Misr, the country’s second-largest government-owned bank. He also provided the same information in a Facebook post.

In late March, the Central Bank of Egypt imposed caps on individuals’ daily ATM cash withdrawals.

Observers believe that these measures are intended to curb inflation and prevent panic withdrawals amid the coronavirus pandemic.

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