ABSTRACT
The currency of Egypt is, at present, a sterling exchange standard. It was introduced between 1914 and 1916 as an emergency measure, but it has continued in operation ever since. The popularity of the National Bank note and its usage remained circumscribed. A great deal of local business transactions and of financing crops was carried on by means of gold currency, part of which was periodically imported from abroad. The real landmark in the modern history of Egyptian currency was brought about by the outbreak of war. The shock which the declaration of hostilities occasioned had immediate repercussions in Egypt. The Government of Egypt, after little hesitation, decided upon the continuance of linking the local currency to sterling: the reasons being, first, the loss which the National Bank would sustain from the depreciation of its Treasury Bill reserves: secondly, the fear that the independence of the local currency might injure cotton exports to Great Britain.
