Yield On Egyptian Dollar CDs Hit US$ 6 Mln This Week

The yield on the Egyptian dollar certificates of deposit, launched by banks in seven Arab countries, reached US$ 6 million this week, raising the total yield to US$ 146 million.

Given the higher yield, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and the Ministry of Finance agreed to extend the offering of the certificate six months more, as the term of the first segment of the certificate was slated to end at the middle of last September, said Sherif Elwy, deputy chairman of the National Bank of Egypt (NBE).

Egypt has launched dollar certificates of deposit for Egyptians living abroad to support the country’s economy through offsetting the lack of dollar liquidity.

Despite increasing the return to 4%, the certificate witnessed low demand since being launched as the yield on which reached EGP 193 million at the end of last June, according to the Central Bank of Egypt’s latest report.

The new dollar certificate of deposit was launched by the NBE in May 2011 with term of three years and annual return of 4% that is refundable after six months with a minimum purchasing limit of US$ 1000 and no maximum limit.

The return is calculated from the beginning of the first day of the following month of the purchasing date as long as it precedes the following new month with at least five days.

The Egyptian dollar certificate of deposits is available at the following banks: