Egyptian pound
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| ISO 4217 Code | EGP |
| User(s) | Egypt |
| Inflation | 4.9% |
| Source | The World Factbook, 2005 est. |
| Subunit | |
| 1/100 | piastre |
| 1/1000 | millieme |
| Symbol | £, LE, or ج.م |
| piastre | Pt. |
| Coins | 5, 10, 20, 25, 50 piasters, 1 pound |
| Banknotes | 5, 10, 25, 50 piastres, 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 pounds |
| Central bank | Central Bank of Egypt |
| Website | www.cbe.org.eg |
The pound (Arabic: الجنيه al-Gunaih) is the currency of Egypt. Known as the Egyptian pound (Arabic: الجنيه المصرى al-Gunaih al-Maṣrī) until 1978, it is divided into 100 piastres (قرش qirsh) or 1000 milliemes (مليم malleem).
The ISO 4217 code is EGP. Locally, the abbreviation LE or L.E., which stands for livre égyptienne (French for Egyptian pound) is frequently used. E£ and £E are also much less-frequently used. The Egyptian Arabic name, gunaih, may be related to the English name guinea.
Contents |
[edit] History
In 1834, a Royal Decree promulgating a Parliamentary Bill was issued providing for the issuing of an Egyptian currency based on a bimetallic base. In 1836 the Egyptian pound was minted and put into circulation.
The pound was originally divided into 100 piastres, each of 40 para. In 1885, the para ceased to be issued and the piastre was divided into tenths (عشرالقرش oshr al-qirsh). These tenths were renamed milliemes in 1916.
The legal exchange rates were fixed by force of law for important foreign currencies which became acceptable in the settlement of internal transactions. Eventually this led to Egypt using a de facto gold standard. (1885-1914)
The National Bank of Egypt issued banknotes for the first time on 3 April 1899. The Central Bank of Egypt and the National Bank of Egypt were unified into the Central Bank of Egypt.
[edit] Coins
Coins, even for the smallest amounts, are encountered much less frequently than notes but 5, 10, 20, and 25 piastres coins remain legal currency. The most recent 25 piastre coin is holed.
During late spring in 2005, plans were announced to introduce a new 200 pounds note and coins for 50 piastres and 1 pound due to high cumulative inflation.
On June 1, 2006, 50 piastres and 1 pound coins were introduced, with the equivalent banknotes to be scrapped later. The coins bear the faces of Cleopatra VII and Tutankhamun, and the 1 pound coin is bimetallic. Their availabilities are expected to gradually increase in the coming months.
[edit] Banknotes
Banknotes worth 5, 10, 25, 50 piastres, 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 pounds are currently in circulation. Notes of 25 piastres and above are issued by the Central Bank of Egypt, while 5 and 10 piastres are issued by the state. The Central Bank website put the two lower valued notes under the category "coins" instead of "banknotes". All Egyptian banknotes are bilingual, with Arabic texts and Eastern Arabic numerals on the obverse and English and Hindu Arabic numerals on the reverse. Obverse designs tend to feature an Islamic building with reverse designs featuring an Ancient Egyptian building.
[edit] Historical exchange rates
[edit] Pound Sterling
This table shows the historical value of one pound sterling in Egyptian pounds:
| Date | Official Rate |
|---|---|
| 1885 to 1949 | EGP 0.97 |
[edit] US Dollar
This table shows the historical value of one U.S. dollar in Egyptian pounds:
| Date | Official Rate | Date | Official Rate | Date | Official Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1885 to 1939 | EGP 0.20 | 1940 to 1949 | EGP 0.25 | 1950 to 1967 | EGP 0.36 |
| 1968 to 1978 | EGP 0.40 | 1979 to 1988 | EGP 0.60 | 1989 | EGP 0.83 |
| 1990 | EGP 1.50 | 1991 | EGP 3.00 | 1992 | EGP 3.33 |
| 1993 to 1998 | EGP 3.39 | 1999 | EGP 3.40 | 2000 | EGP 3.42 to EGP 3.75 |
| 2001 | EGP 3.75 to EGP 4.50 | 2002 | EGP 4.50 to EGP 4.62 | 2003 | EGP 4.82 to EGP 6.13 |
| 2004 | EGP 6.13 to EGP 6.28 | 2005 | EGP 6.28 to EGP 5.75 | 2006 | EGP 5.75 |
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[edit] External link
ca:Lliura egípcia de:Ägyptisches Pfund es:Libra egipcia eo:Egipta pundo fr:Livre égyptienne ko:이집트 파운드 it:Sterlina egiziana he:לירה מצרית lt:Egipto svaras nl:Egyptisch pond no:Egyptisk pund pl:Funt egipski ro:Liră egipteană fi:Egyptin punta sv:Egyptiskt pund tg:Фунти Миср
