Arabs Seek Safety in Dollars as Uprisings’ Euphoria Fades

As he watched Egypt’s revolt turn into a financial crisis that devoured 50 percent of the nation’s foreign-currency holdings last year, Ahmed El-Rifai started charging some clients in U.S. dollars.

The 32-year-old owner of Egyweb, a Web-development company in Cairo, says he may also buy real estate with his Egyptian pound savings, concerned that the loss of reserves will lead to a devaluation. That has already sent the pound down 3.8 percent since the start of last year. Iraq’s central bank says its dollars are fueling Syria’s black market. In Tripoli, Libya, dozens are queuing every morning at banks to buy the U.S. currency.