Egypt to introduce electronic pound in 2030
The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) is set to introduce the electronic pound in 2030 as part of the nation’s economic strategy.
The information was disclosed in a document released by the government of the North African country on January 9 as an eight-directional economic strategy for the period of 2024 to 2030 to improve the economic conditions and quality of life in the country.
The document withheld additional information on its implementation and other specifics. “This document is set to be offered for public discussion soon before receiving official approval to enter into force,” the government document read.
Between 2016 and 2022, 42.3 million out of the 65.4 million Egyptians aged 16 and over were financially included and owned transactional accounts in bank accounts, Egypt Post accounts, mobile wallets, and prepaid cards. This reflected an increase of 147% with prepaid cards and mobile e-wallets driving the increase, the CBE reported
According to the 2023 McKinsey Global Payment, in 2022 there was a nearly four percentage point global fall in the use of cash. The growth rate of electronic transactions over the last five years has been almost three times higher than the growth rate of payments revenue overall. It is anticipated that developing countries that rely heavily on cash will undergo further substantial changes towards instant payments by 2027.
