142 CultureShock! Egypt
is installed, my experience is that the price is right and the
service is good.Money and Banks
There are over 100 banks in Egypt and numerous joint
ventures and specialised banks. There are also more than 20
foreign banks represented in Egypt. To open a bank account
in Egypt, you will need your passport. It is best if someone
local goes with you who knows the bank’s procedures; but
if not, you can handle it yourself. In order to get a hard
currency account, e.g. a US dollar account, you must deposit
a minimum amount of money in that currency to open
the account. Then, if deposits are made in that particular
currency, you may withdraw funds in that currency.
Otherwise, you may find that sometimes hard currencies are
not available to purchase or are hard to find. For example, if
you have Egyptian pounds and want to change them to US
dollars, frequently there are no dollars to buy. I don’t think
I have ever been able to exchange my Egyptian money for
US dollars or Euros when leaving the country, even
though you are supposed to be able to do this at the
airport bank.
Most private transactions in Egypt seem to be by cash
or credit card. The good news is, banks are seemingly
everywhere in Egypt. Furthermore, in some of the larger
hotels, you can find them open most hours of the day. Banks
typically close on Fridays, Saturdays and often for several
hours during the afternoon. Some exceptions to this rule
are the banks located in major hotels, which may be open
24 hours per day, seven days per week. Other banks, such
as at the airport, also operate special hours due to the high
tourist traffic.
Exchanging foreign currency or cashing major brand
traveller’s cheques is rarely a problem. You will need your
passport to exchange money or cash traveller’s checks. ATM
machines are now located in many of the larger hotels,
so in an emergency (and assuming the system is working
at both your home bank and in Egypt), it is possible to
directly get funds from an account at your home bank.