New Egyptian Coin

On April 7, the Egyptian government announced that it is preparing to introduce a new denomination. The Egyptian 2 pound is intended to alleviate the lack of small change in circulation, which has been negatively impacting citizens’ daily transactions. Member of the Egyptian Senate and secretary-general of the Egyptian Social Democratic Party Bassem Kamel first submitted the proposal. 

The lack of small change stems from the difference in nominal value and scrap value of circulating coinage, which has resulted in coins being hoarded and melted through unlicensed foundries. The practice is against the Central Bank of Egypt’s law No. 194 of 2020, which also promotes cashless payments and the licensing of all electronic payment services. 

The New Egyptian £2

Currently, Egypt issues coins in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 25, and 50 piastres (half Egyptian pound) and 1 Egyptian pound. The current 2026-dated E£1 coin is a 25mm bimetallic issue with a brass-plated steel center and a nickel-plated steel outer ring. With the E£10 note currently worth about 18 cents, the new E£2 coin would be valued at less than 4 cents. 

Specifics of the new denomination are not available, but Kamel has stated that modifications to the currency’s technical specifications, as well as further encouragement to expand digital payments, will accompany the new coin. Kamel also said that he believes the increased use of larger denominations will help reduce the need for large quantities of smaller denominations.