Central Bank of Egypt sets new measures for fraudulent and abusive use of credit, debit cards overseas

According to a circular issued on Thursday, the CBE said it has noticed that there are credit and debit cards that are used abroad to collect hard currency while their owners are in Egypt. The CBE said that it has also noticed that there are clients who exchange local currency for US dollar while being in the country with no evidence of travelling abroad.

According to CBE regulations, travellers are allowed access to a certain amount of hard currency from their local banks after providing their passport and ticket.

Egypt is suffering from a shortage of hard currency. A black market where the US dollar is traded for over EGP 30, compared to the official exchange rate of EGP 24.7, has flourished.    

As of 22 December, all banks are instructed to notify the CBE and the I-score Company of any credit and debit card abuse cases of that sort, so as to withhold the credit cards and take necessary legal action.