1 Qirsh

Egypt's small-denomination coinage of the early 1980s was produced under sustained pressure from the IMF and a domestic subsidy system that kept consumer prices artificially low, meaning coins like this qirsh saw genuine heavy circulation rather than the hoarding patterns common in neighboring economies. By 1984, the Egyptian pound had lost significant purchasing power following the 1973 oil shock aftermath and successive devaluations, yet the qirsh remained in active daily use for bus fares and small market transactions well into the decade.