ATMs around Egypt face a severe cash shortage on the morning of 24 and 25 May 2026, disrupting salary and pension withdrawals ahead of Eid Al-Adha. Al Manassa reports the same trend from Maadi district and surrounding areas.
Al Manassa observed notable crowding outside the Banque Misr branch on Street 7, where five ATMs, three inside the branch and two outside, had completely run out of cash.
People waiting to withdraw 500 pounds from ATMs at the Commercial International Bank, May 25, 2026.Bank security attributed the disruptions to exceptional pressure on ATMs, explaining that the simultaneous payment of pensions and salaries, along with preparations for the holiday, had doubled demand beyond the machines’ capacity.
While Al Manassa’s tour focused on banks in the Maadi district, Facebook users from various governorates shared the same complaints. A page called Akhbar Al-Zagazig posted: “Before Eid Al-Adha, residents of Sharqiya governorate cry out over crowding at ATM machines.”
During a field tour by Al Manassa, covering six private and state-owned banks on Street 9, withdrawal attempts failed. Pensioners lined up outside Banque Misr at Mahatta Square and two branches of The United Bank of Egypt, waiting for the ATMs to be “refilled.”
The disruptions spread to private banks that are not usually crowded, such as Attijariwafa Bank, Arab Bank, and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank.
A woman waits for an ATM to be refilled with cash to withdraw her pension, May 25, 2026.Employees at these branches attributed the cash shortage to customers of state-owned banks turning to them after being unable to withdraw cash at their own branches, saying, “When people found the state-owned bank ATMs empty, they came here to withdraw cash and emptied the machines.”
At the two CIB branches on Street 9, the scenes varied; while the ATMs disappointed those waiting in front of the Sakanat branch after running completely out of cash by 9 am, the Mahatta Square branch resorted to an exceptional measure to address the cash shortage.
The bank’s management limited withdrawals to a maximum of 500 Egyptian pounds (about $9.50) per transaction, drawing frustration and mockery among those waiting in queues. While some were forced to accept the amount as their “last hope,” others decided to leave, with one person sarcastically remarking, “What am I supposed to do with these 500 pounds? It won’t even buy breakfast!”
Outside Cairo, local city Facebook pages posted video highlighting the pleas of pensioners in Beni Suef governorate, decrying “the ATMs are empty and we are suffering.”
The National Authority for Social Insurance had announced that pension payments would be moved forward on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha, rather than the usual date at the beginning of each month.
