US lawsuit raises stakes for Lebanon's financial institutions

Report by Lea Fayad, English adaptation by Yasmine Jaroudi

The Lebanese banking sector finds itself under legal scrutiny, albeit not within Lebanon's borders.

For almost a week now, a group of Lebanese citizens has lodged a lawsuit in the United States against Banque du Liban (BDL), its former governor Riad Salameh, several Lebanese banks, and international auditing firms responsible for auditing these banks' accounts.

The accusation revolves around alleged fraud against depositors by manipulating financial system integrity information in the country and deceiving them into believing they could access their deposits.

This collective lawsuit, known in the US as a Class Action, typically carries more weight than individual lawsuits and awaits referral to the competent US judiciary.

However, this lawsuit has deeply unsettled Lebanese banks. According to stakeholders:

Firstly, lawsuits abroad could further tarnish the reputation of the banking sector, threatening to strain relationships with correspondent banks abroad through which all banking transactions, including remittances and imports, are conducted.

Secondly, including BDL as a defendant in the lawsuit is erroneous, as the institution belongs to the state and owns assets for all Lebanese, not just depositors.

Thirdly, affluent depositors are spearheading these lawsuits, and if successful, they could deplete what remains of the sector's funds, especially for small depositors.

According to a delegation from the Association of Banks in Lebanon, addressing Prime Minister Najib Mikati, urgent action is needed to pass legislation regulating and restructuring the banking sector, a process that has been delayed for over four years.

According to reports, Mikati is currently reviewing ministers' proposals and amendments to the latest version of this law for reintroduction in a later session of the Cabinet.