The Ministry of Finance has announced its intention to issue six auctions of treasury bills and bonds worth EGP 143bn in the first week of July 2024. Acting on behalf of the government, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) will conduct four T-bill auctions totalling EGP 135bn. These auctions include EGP 40bn for 91-day bills, EGP 35bn for 182-day bills, EGP 20bn for 273-day bills, and EGP 40bn for 364-day bills.
In addition, two bond auctions worth EGP 8bn are planned: a two-year bond auction worth EGP 2bn and a three-year bond auction worth EGP 6bn.
Typically, T-bill auctions take place on Sundays and Thursdays, while bond auctions occur on Mondays each week.
As of January 2024, the total outstanding balances of local treasury bills and bonds reached approximately EGP 4.966trn. According to the latest report published on the ministry’s website, the outstanding balances of treasury bills were around EGP 2.734trn, while the outstanding balances of treasury bonds were about EGP 2.232trn.
Banks operating in the Egyptian market play a significant role as investors in the treasury bills and bonds regularly issued by the government to cover the state budget deficit. These bonds and T-bills are initially issued through 15 banks participating in the “Primary Dealers” system in the primary market. Subsequently, these banks resell a portion of these securities in the secondary market to individual and institutional investors, both local and foreign.
