This is Beirut - Banque du Liban

BDL Issues Statement on Legal Measures and Financial Transparency

This Is Beirut, 22/05 15:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Banks Banque du Liban Central Bank of Lebanon Finances Parliament Lebanon

Lebanon’s Central Bank (BDL) announced in an official statement that it remains committed to transparency and integrity within the financial sector. It is actively pursuing legal procedures in collaboration with specialized law firms across several European countries and other international jurisdictions. This effort aims to initiate judicial ...

Interest on Lebanese Pound Deposits Drops

Liliane Mokbel, 17/05 14:00 - Reading : less than a minute

Banque du Liban

2% — that’s the average interest rate on deposits in Lebanese pounds, according to the latest figures released by the Banque du Liban for March 2025. This represents a clear decline from 2.86% in February, although it remains higher than the rate recorded a year earlier in March 2024, when it stood at just 1%. In contrast, interest rates on ...

Cautious Optimism Persists as Lebanon’s Retail Sector Remains Sluggish

This Is Beirut, 15/05 18:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Banque du Liban Gulf International Monetary Fund

The latest Retail Trade Index published by the Beirut Traders Association and Fransabank for the first quarter of 2025 is bluntly titled: “A cautiously optimistic start to the year… but commercial activity remains sluggish.” A headline that reflects a climate both promising and uncertain. The optimism stems largely from notable political ...

83 Draft Laws Submitted, Only One Passed

This Is Beirut, 15/05 12:00 - Reading : 7 minute(s)

Banque du Liban Beirut International Airport Central Bank of Lebanon Hezbollah Internal Security Forces

On Thursday, May 15, MPs gathered at Nejmeh Square for a legislative session with an exceptionally heavy agenda: 83 draft laws were submitted for review, underscoring a chronic governance crisis oscillating between institutional paralysis and reform efforts. Only one law was approved by the end of the session: an amended law criminalizing ...

BDL’s Gold Reserves Surge by 41.6% Year-on-Year

This is Beirut , 10/05 15:45 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Central Bank of Lebanon Banque du Liban Lebanon

According to its latest balance sheet, Lebanon’s Central Bank (BDL) reported total assets of $93.86 billion as of the end of April 2025, reflecting a modest 0.33% year-on-year increase. This comes in the wake of BDL’s adoption of a new official exchange rate of 89,500 LBP/USD on February 1, 2024. A standout figure in the report is the sharp ...

Karim Souhaid: The Banking Reform Law Undermines the Independence of the Central Bank

This is Beirut, 07/05 21:45 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

BDL Banque du Liban Lebanon Economy Parliament

Presenting a 33-page document containing substantial remarks on the banking reform bill submitted by the government, the Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, Karim Souhaid, attended a session of the Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee held mid-week. The session was chaired by MP Ibrahim Kanaan and attended by 40 parliamentarians, along ...

Farewell to Wads of Cash: Lebanon Unveils Banknotes of LBP 500,000 and 1 Million

Christiane Tager, 28/04 22:05 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Banks Banque du Liban Central Bank of Lebanon

After nearly six years of economic and financial turmoil, Lebanon has taken a long-anticipated step by issuing higher-denomination banknotes. Last Thursday, the Lebanese Parliament approved a draft law presented by MP Ziad Hawat, after nearly two years of legislative wrangling, granting the Banque du Liban (BDL) permission to issue notes of LBP ...

In Washington, Lebanon’s Central Bank Governor Calls for a Structured National Recovery

This is Beirut, 24/04 11:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Banks Washington International Monetary Fund Banque du Liban

During the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in Washington, Banque du Liban Governor Karim Souhaid delivered a stark and candid assessment of Lebanon’s critical condition. Speaking to an audience of international experts and policymakers, Souhaid described a country “at a crossroads—between fragility and ...

Morgan Ortagus and the Politics of Soft Power

This Is Beirut, 05/04 15:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Banque du Liban Hamas Hezbollah Joseph Aoun Lebanese Forces

The US President's Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East, Morgan Ortagus, appears to be pursuing a policy of soft power diplomacy in Lebanon, where she began an official two-day mission yesterday. Arriving in Beirut on Friday, the American envoy held talks on Saturday morning with President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and Speaker ...

Judges and BDL Governor Take Oath at Baabda Palace

This Is Beirut, 03/04 15:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Banks Banque du Liban Central Bank of Lebanon Joseph Aoun

Three newly appointed judges and Lebanon’s new Central Bank (BDL) governor took their oaths of office on Thursday at Baabda Palace before President Joseph Aoun. Judges Judge Jamal al-Hajjar, Public Prosecutor at the Court of Cassation and Vice President of the Supreme Judicial Council, was sworn in alongside Judge Youssef al-Jamil, President ...

The Ongoing Gold Rush

Liliane Mokbel, 02/04 21:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Liban Banque du Liban Or Réserves

Gold prices continue to soar, drawing increased interest from investors and central banks worldwide. Since January 2025, the price of an ounce of gold has surged by 12%, fueling a surge in demand for the precious metal. This surge is driven by President Donald Trump’s protectionist policies and his pledge of “the mother of all trade ...

Wassim Mansouri Reflects on His Interim Leadership at the BDL

This is Beirut, 25/03 22:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Banque du Liban Central Bank of Lebanon

As the Lebanese Cabinet under Nawaf Salam prepares to appoint a new governor for the Banque du Liban (BDL), assessments on Wassim Mansouri's interim tenure since August 2023 are mixed. Some view his actions as having preserved a degree of stability amidst unprecedented political and security crises, while others argue that the stability he has ...