The directives include establishing reliable restructuring plans and setting aside financial provisions to be addressed within six months, according to Western media reports on Tuesday. According to the directives of the Syrian Central Bank, Syrian banks are required to acknowledge their exposure to the Lebanese financial system due to the funds deposited in Lebanon during the Syrian civil war.
Reports indicate that the aim of these directives is to attempt reforms in Lebanon and address the liquidity crisis affecting economic activity. In a press statement, the Governor of the Central Bank of Syria, Abdul Qader Al-Hisriya, stated that banks would need to provide the central bank with a reliable restructuring plan within the specified timeframe, highlighting the possibility of collaborating with Lebanese banks or forming partnerships with other international institutions.
Reports suggest that the exposure of Syrian commercial banks to Lebanon exceeds $1.6 billion, a significant portion of the total private deposits of Syrian banks in 2024, estimated at $4.9 billion. Bankers say they had no choice but to turn to Lebanon during the Syrian crisis after 2011 due to US sanctions, but Syrian banks became trapped following the collapse of the Lebanese banking system in 2019 due to financial mismanagement and the political crisis that Lebanon has yet to resolve.
