Central Bank of Egypt crypto: What You Need to Know About Crypto and Central Bank Policies in Egypt
When it comes to Central Bank of Egypt crypto, the official stance of Egypt’s monetary authority on digital assets and blockchain-based financial activity. Also known as CBE crypto policy, it defines whether Egyptians can legally buy, trade, or hold cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum. The Central Bank of Egypt doesn’t recognize any cryptocurrency as legal tender. In fact, it’s banned financial institutions from processing crypto transactions. That means banks, payment processors, and even mobile wallets can’t touch Bitcoin, Dogecoin, or any other digital coin. If you try to use your Egyptian pound account to buy crypto on Binance or Coinbase, the transaction will get blocked.
But here’s the twist: people are still using crypto anyway. Thousands of Egyptians trade on peer-to-peer platforms like Paxful and LocalBitcoins, using cash or mobile money to swap for Bitcoin. Why? Because inflation has crushed the Egyptian pound, and many see crypto as a way to protect their savings. The Egyptian pound, the national currency of Egypt, which has lost over 50% of its value against the US dollar since 2022 is in freefall. Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Egypt, the government body responsible for monetary policy, currency issuance, and banking regulation in Egypt keeps raising interest rates — but that doesn’t help ordinary people who can’t afford loans or savings accounts that outpace inflation.
There’s no official Egyptian central bank digital currency, a digital version of the Egyptian pound issued and controlled by the Central Bank of Egypt — not yet. While countries like Nigeria and China are testing their own digital currencies, Egypt’s central bank has only issued warnings. They’ve cracked down on crypto ATMs, shut down local exchanges, and fined businesses that advertise crypto services. Yet, they haven’t created a legal path forward. That’s why most crypto activity in Egypt happens in the shadows — through Telegram groups, WhatsApp networks, and unregulated P2P platforms.
What you’ll find in the posts below isn’t about how to buy crypto in Egypt — it’s about what happens when governments say no, but people still need alternatives. You’ll see how crypto is used in countries with unstable currencies, how scams prey on people desperate for financial escape, and why so many "crypto airdrops" targeting Egyptians are just lies. There’s no official blessing from the Central Bank of Egypt. But there’s real demand. And that’s where the real story begins.
Cross-border crypto transfers from Egypt are illegal under Law No. 194 of 2020, with penalties including fines up to $213,000 and imprisonment. Despite this, millions use crypto to escape inflation and currency collapse, creating a dangerous underground market.