Emirates NBD sells 40 percent of its BoB shares. Deal valued at $39 million

Bank of Beirut (BoB) acquired more than 40 percent of Emirates NBD's stake in the bank, valued at $39 million. It represents 2.7 percent of the bank's equity out of a total 6.5 percent shareholding. An EMIRATES NBD is a UAE-based bank.

A source at BoB downplayed the significance of the sale transfer. "It represents 1.2 percent of the bank's equity," he said. It is the first divestiture of a UAE investment from the country after the political crisis with Saudi Arabia last November. Several...

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SGBL to buy two banks in France and Monaco. $183 million in combined equity

Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL) said it has signed a deal with Luxembourg-based KBL European Private Bankers (KBL epb) to acquire two of its subsidiaries.

The subsidiaries are KBL Richelieu Banque Privée in France and KBL Monaco Private Bankers. The combined equity of these two subsidiaries stood at €154 million ($183 million) at the end of 2016, according to the annual report of the KBL epb group.

The move, which is part of SGBL's ...

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Additional $500 million in subsidized loans for 2017. Expatriates to benefit from subsidized loans

The Central Bank (BDL) has decided to inject an additional $500 million to the stimulus package for 2017 which aims to finance productive projects and home purchases at subsidized rates, according to BDL's intermediate circular 475.

This brings the stimulus earmarked for the current year to $1.5 billion. The $1 billion originally allocated for 2017 has already been used up.

BDL will continue to charge the banks a one percent interest rate on the additional funds if they are denomin...

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€80 million BDL-subsidized energy loans at zero interest. Financing scheme by EIB and AFD through local banks

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Agence Française de Developpement (AFD) will provide a financing facility of €80 million ($95.8 million) through local banks to finance energy projects.

The interest rate paid by the borrowers will be near zero as the credit facility will be heavily subsidized by the Central Bank (BDL).

The facility, named Lebanon Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Finance Facility (LEEREFF), aims to finance small scale projects in the sector of ene...

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Saradar Bank buys half of Vitas microfinance company. Saradar aims to gain a foothold in the microfinance market

Saradar Bank said it has acquired a 49 percent stake in microfinance company Vitas SAL, a local subsidiary of the US-based Vitas Group. The transaction was valued at around $3.7 million according to a source linked to the transaction. Both Saradar and Vitas refused to confirm this figure.

In a statement, the bank said that the move will allow it to gain a foothold in the promising local microfinance market.

Vitas SAL, which launched its operations 17 years ago, has so far issued o...

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Moneylenders to get same training as bankers. Central Bank circular regulating further ‘Comptoirs de crédit’

The Central Bank (BDL) has issued a new regulation requiring certain executives in moneylending businesses to have qualifications similar to those required by people holding comparable jobs in banks and financial institutions. The prerequisites pertain to academic, technical, and ethical qualifications in specific regulated positions.

The moneylending businesses, identified by BDL as 'specialized lending entities', are known locally as 'comptoirs de crédit'. They provide small loan...

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BDL to raise ceiling for industrial export soft loans. Conditions to ease in a bid to benefit SMEs

The Central Bank (BDL) will raise the ceiling of soft loans provided by banks to finance the working capital of industrial exporters to $3 million from $2 million, according to Wael Hamdan, Director of BDL's Financing Unit.

The decision is an amendment to a BDL ruling addressed to the banks last May through intermediate Circular 462.

Manufacturing companies that export at least 25 percent of their output will be eligible for the soft loans instead of the current 50 percent.

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Banks get to open more branches per year. BDL Circular aims to expand financial inclusion

The Central Bank (BDL) will allow banks to increase the number of branches to three per year, up from two currently, provided that at least one of the new branches uses modern technology, according to BDL's intermediate circular 467.

BDL said it may even allow a bank to exceed the three-branch-a-year ceiling if it finds a good reason for that, especially if the bank plans to open branches outside big cities.

The Central Bank has also issued another intermediate circular, numbered 4...

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EIB offers $303 million in credit lines to four banks. Funds target SMEs and mid-cap companies

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has granted credit lines to four local banks with a combined value of 265 million euros ($303 million). The funds will be used to finance small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and mid-cap companies.

The beneficiaries are Byblos Bank, which was granted a credit line equivalent to $114 million, Fransabank with a credit line of $86 million, and Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL) and First National Bank (FNB) with $69 millio...

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Torbey reelected Chairman of ABL. Salim Sfeir won one seat

Joseph Torbey has been reelected as Chairman of the Association of Banks (ABL). His team won 11 out of 12 seats of ABL's Board of Directors.

His rival Salim Sfeir won one seat at the expense of Varouj Nerguizian, Chairman of Emirates Lebanon Bank, who was on Torbey's list.

This will be the sixth term for Torbey, who chaired ABL in 2001-2003, 2003-2005, 2009-2011, 2011-2013, and 2015-2017. He is the incumbent Chairman of Credit Libanais.

The winners in Torbey's team are Fredd...

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Two lists face-off in ABL elections. Sfeir leads a ‘List for Change’ VS. Torbey’s ‘Banking Decision List’

Salim Sfeir, Chairman of Bank of Beirut, is spearheading a list of eight bankers against the list of four-time Chairman of Association of Banks in Lebanon, Joseph Torbey.

With his "List for Change", Sfeir promised to "carry out a series of reform measures to improve the efficiency and performance of ABL."

Sfeir is planning to follow up the issue of U.S. sanctions with American officials. His criticism was that middle-sized and smaller banks have no say in the ABL's agenda.

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EuroMena buys stake in Moroccan retailer. Two funds will be launched within six months

Beirut-based EuroMena Funds has acquired a seven percent stake in Retail Holding, a Morocco-based diversified retail group for a total of 220 million Moroccan dirhams ($22.5 million), according to the Casablanca Stock Exchange.

Retail Holding acts as franchisee for French retail giant Carrefour, apparel retailer Kiabi, Virgin Megastore, and Burger King.

The investment, which was carried out through the fund EuroMena III, will be mainly used to finance the expansion of Retail Holdin...

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$3.2 million for UK-Lebanon Tech Hub. Fund provided by BDL

Nicolas Sehnaoui, Chairman of the UKLTH, announced a fund of $3.5 million as an investment for the UK-Lebanon Tech Hub (UKLTH). The fund is being provided by the Central Bank (BDL). The amount matches the $2.5 million investment provided by the British Embassy in February this year.

According to Dimitri Papadimitriou, Acting Director of UKLTH, the money will go toward the efforts of the UKLTH to foster the entrepreneurial ecosystem and improve the knowledge economy.

"Ultimately,...

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GroupMed mulls selling shares in IPO. Khawaja completes acquisition of 42.2 percent stake

GroupMed Holding, the owner of Bankmed, is considering launching an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of its shares in the near future, said Alaa Al Khawaja, a new shareholder in the company.

Khawaja said that his acquisition of 42.24 percent stake in GroupMed "will pave the way for increasing and diversifying the ownership structure of GroupMed which could result in an IPO in the near future."

After obtaining the Central Bank's approval, Khawaja completed the acquisition of the stake,...

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Angel network initiative launched. Targets young CEOs from traditional sectors

The Angels Lebanon initiative has been launched by Nicolas Sehnaoui, Chairman of the UK Lebanon Teck Hub (UKLTH), with support from Marwan Kheireddine, Chairman of Al Mawarid Bank. The initiative aims to target young CEOs from traditional sectors like the auto sector, manufacturers, industrialists to invest in the tech sector, especially startups, according to Sehnaoui.

"We could make the CEOs aware of what is happening in the tech sector, raise their appetite in investing in it, and rec...

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BLOM redeems $200 million shares. Bank converts $27 million earnings into equity

BLOM Bank said it has redeemed and canceled 20 million preferred shares by buying them back at their issue price of $10 per share.

This operation has resulted in a decrease of $200 million in the bank's total shareholder's equity, which stood at $2.95 billion at the end of 2016.

BLOM Bank is overcapitalized and has ample liquidity and does not need to keep these shares, said Tala Baba, the bank's Assistant General Manager and Chief Financial Officer.

BLOM's current capital...

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Shaker Holdings exits BLOM Bank for $69.8 million. Main stake bought by other shareholders

Shaker Holdings has sold the remainder of its stake in BLOM Bank consisting of 6.5 million common shares to Banorabe S.A. and BLOM Bank itself for a total of $69.8 million. Each share was sold for $10.7, BLOM Bank said in a statement.

Luxembourg-based holding company Banorabe, part of the Blom Group family, has acquired five million shares for a total of $53.5 million, thus raising its stake in the bank to 17.5 percent from 15.2 percent.

With a stake of 34.4 percent, Bank of New Y...

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Solidere to delist its GDRs from London Stock Exchange. Listing costs outweigh low trading volumes

Solidere said it has asked to delist its Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) from the London Stock Exchange (LSE) effective June 29, 2017, due to low trading volumes.

Given the GDRs limited liquidity, the costs and administrative burdens are disproportionate to the benefits that could be derived from keeping them listed, the real estate company said in a statement.

The GDRs, which represent Solidere's 'A' shares, were listed on the LSE in 1996.

The 'A' shares will remain lis...

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Emirati Mohamad Alabbar acquires large stake in MEVP. Non-controlling share is less than 50 percent

Emirati Mohamad Alabbar, founder of Emaar Properties, has acquired a stake in Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP). Alabbar's acquisition is just under 50 percent.

"Alabbar had been looking for a VC partner who knows the technology ecosystem and approached us," the company said.

The VC firm has $120 million in assets spread over four funds, two locally, and two regionally.

MEVP and AlAbbar plan to invest in a new fund that will be launched here and regionally later this ye...

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470 financial crimes reported Special Investigation Comm.. Cases of terrorism financing up 70 percent

The Central Bank's Special Investigation Commission (SIC) said it received 470 cases related to financial crimes last year, up nine percent compared with 2015.

The number of crimes reported by local sources totaled 363. The remaining 107 cases were submitted by foreign sources, according to SIC's 2016 annual report.

With 140 cases, embezzlement of private funds continues to be the most reported crime. This kind of crime increased 40 percent compared with 2015.

Forgery rank...

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Cedrus Invest Bank client implicated in insider trading. Bank not named as defendant

The United States' Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a legal case against unknown defenders, including a customer of Cedrus Invest Bank, on suspicions of insider trading in call options. The Cedrus client has realized a potential profit of around $527,000, according to SEC.

Contrary to rumors and actual brief by the SEC, The Chairman of Cedrus, Fadi Assali, said that the bank has nothing to do with this issue and will not be affected by it. The deal involves the customer ...

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Scale-up program to launch at UKLTH. Venture building accelerator program launched, Beirut Innovation Week confirmed

The UK Lebanon Tech Hub (UKLTH) will launch a scale-up program in September. The program will follow on from the venture accelerator program, The Nucleus, which was launched last week. Dimitri Papadimitriou, Acting Director of UKLTH, said the scale-up program is unconnected to The Nucleus.

"The scale-up program is still a work in progress. We are currently working on the program's branding aspects. Details of the program will be publically announced in the coming months," he said.
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Local fintech startups among top four countries regionally. Emerging sector showing positive signs

Lebanon is one of four countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) that when combined account for almost 75 percent of all fintech startups launched in 12 countries regionally, according to the recently published report: State of Fintech, by WRL and PayFort. The other three countries are the UAE, Jordan, and Egypt.

The report revealed that 105 fintech startups had launched in the region by the start of 2016. This is expected to reach 250 by 2020.

Jad Salame, Managing Par...

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Bank Audi sells cards unit to M1 Group. Deal estimated at $185 million

Bank Audi has sold its electronic payment and card services business to M1 Financial Technologies, a subsidiary of M1 Group. M1 will operate the business via Areeba SAL.

The value of the deal is $185 million, but is subject to adjustment of up to $35 million. The deal includes acquiring the team, equipment, machines, and all points of sale. The completion of the deal is waiting for the final approval from the Central Bank, as well as the relevant service providers, including MasterCard an...

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$3 billion bonds issued to repay maturing debts. Oversubscribed six times

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) issued U.S. dollar denominated bonds worth $3 billion to repay foreign currency debt maturing throughout the year. The original objective was to raise $1.5 billion.

The bonds were divided into three tranches with maturities set at ten, 15, and 20 years

The issue was managed by four banks: Barclays, Byblos Bank, Societe Generale de Banque au Liban (SGBL), and JPMorgan.

Subscription bids from local and foreign banks and financial institutions hav...

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Lebanon Seed Fund launched by Flat6labs. Investments range $30,000 to $500,000 each

Flat6Labs Beirut announced the launch of Lebanon Seed Fund (LSF), a $20 million early stage fund aimed at supporting 100 local startups over the next five years.

Startups taking part in the seed stage program will receive $30,000-$50,000 in investment. They will go through a 16-week mentorship program. Early stage startups will receive $100,000 to $500,000, as well as access to Flat6Labs Beirut's resources and operational guidance to scale.

The program is in partnership with ArabN...

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BSL provides zero percent housing loan. Requirements: Prepayment to the bank, standing orders

BSL Bank has launched a housing loan with zero percent cost to the borrower.

Charbel Watfa, Financial Controller at the bank, said: "Customers will be required to make a prepayment of 17.5 percent of the loan if the term is 30 years, and 20 percent if 25 years. They should also open a current account at BSL, and pay bills by standing order."

Watfa said that like all banks, clients are obliged to pay the property owner 25 percent of the property's price as a down payment.

T...

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Lucid Investments gains banking license. To execute growth strategy in activities and scope

The final step to transform local financial company Lucid Investments into a licensed bank has been approved by the Central Bank (BDL). The corporation will now operate under the name of Lucid Investment Bank. The specialized bank has increased its capital to LL30 billion ($20 million). The approval follows BDL's keenness for a widening of funding solutions beyond the usual classic credit facilities provided by commercial banks.

Established in 2003, Lucid will continue its core business ...

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