Egyptian banks to open until 2pm in light of curfew hours

Egyptian banks will be open from 8:30am to 2pm starting Tuesday, instead of the normal hours of 9:30am to 3pm, per a decision by the Central Bank of Egypt, Ahram Online reported on Sunday.

According to the central bank’s decision, bank employees will check in at 8am and sign off at 3pm, the head of the Federation of Egyptian Banks, Mohamed El Etreby, said in a statement.

The move comes in line with the new timings of the country’s curfew, he said; on Sunday, the government announced that the curfew would now finish at 5am instead of 6am for a period of two weeks.

The curfew, which has been extended and shortened several times since it was introduced in March as a measure to reduce the spread of the coronavirus, will begin at 8pm each night.

The government is taking steps to reopen facilities and commercial activities that were closed in light of the pandemic, with hotels and government offices opening their doors this week under strict new measures that include mandatory mask-wearing and limits on capacity.