Egypt’s net foreign assets (NFAs) in the banking sector rose to US$22.66 billion in October, up from US$20.78 billion a month earlier, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) said in its latest monthly report.
The NFA balance equivalent to EGP 1.07 trillion (US$22.6 bn) reflects an increase in total foreign assets held by the banking system, which climbed to EGP 4.37 trillion (US$91 bn) in October from EGP 4.32 trillion in September. Foreign liabilities eased slightly to EGP 3.30 trillion, (US$69.39 bn) compared with EGP 3.32 trillion (US$69 bn) the previous month.
Net foreign assets represent the gap between banks’ foreign-currency assets and their obligations. A positive balance indicates that foreign-currency holdings exceed external liabilities.
Egypt’s banking sector fell into negative NFA territory in February 2022 amid a severe foreign-currency crunch accelerated by the Russia–Ukraine conflict and global inflation. The position remained negative until May 2024, when a major inflow from the Wisdom Capital deal pushed the balance back into surplus.
Banking expert Mohamed Abdel Aal said the latest improvement is driven by stronger foreign-currency inflows from remittances, exports and tourism.
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He said maintaining growth in NFAs is key to boosting confidence in the banking system, strengthening its capacity to meet domestic and external payments, and supporting financing needs across the economy. Higher inflows also tend to draw foreign investors into government debt instruments and support the Egyptian pound against the US dollar, he added.
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