The Egyptian pound average exchange rate closed at EGP 17.9 against the US dollar in Egypt's Banks on Wednesday, the lowest since the national currency was freely floated earlier this month, according to the websites of four major local lenders.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved on Friday a three-year, $12 billion loan for Egypt to help the country recover from its deep economic crisis, the fund said in a statement.

Egypt issued on Wednesday $4 billion in bonds in the Irish Stock exchange, the finance ministry said, in an attempt to create new financing sources to plug the country's widening budget deficit.

On Thursday, the Central Bank of Egypt decided to freely float the pound and raise key interest rates as part of reforms aimed at alleviating a dollar shortage and stabilizing the country's economy.