CAIRO: Egypt has signed ‍a record $3.5 billion ‍agreement to allocate 410 megahertz ​of new spectrum to its four mobile operators, ⁠the cabinet said in a statement on Saturday, describing ⁠it as ‌the largest spectrum deal in the country's telecommunications history.

* The operators - state-controlled ⁠Telecom Egypt, Vodafone Egypt, Orange Egypt and E& Egypt - are expected to pay the government $3.5 billion under the deal.

* ⁠The cabinet said the ​newly allocated spectrum matches the total frequency assigned to mobile operators ‍since mobile services were first introduced in Egypt ​30 years ago.

* Egypt's Communications Minister Amr Talaat said the deal would "double the spectrum available to operators in a single transaction" and strengthen network readiness for future digital applications.

* Egypt has eased a foreign currency shortage, supported by an IMF-backed programme, record tourism revenue, remittances ⁠from Egyptians working abroad and ‌investment deals with Gulf states including the United Arab Emirates worth tens of ‌billions of dollars. (Reporting ⁠by Momen Saeed Atallah, Writing by Muhammad ⁠Al Gebaly, Editing by Louise Heavens)