Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates deposited $6bn with Egypt’s Central Bank, the bank’s governor said, a sign that the gulf powers remain committed to propping up the Egyptian economy.

“Today $2bn from each state came into the country’s foreign exchange holdings,” Governor Hisham Ramez told Reuters in a telephone interview.

The interest on the deposits is 2.5% and maturities range from three to five years.

The oil-rich Gulf countries have supported Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous state, with billions of dollars in aid since the Egyptian army removed former President Mohamed Mursi from power following mass protests against his rule in mid-2013.