Inside Lebanon’s shadow economy: The Captagon trade and its toll

Report by Lara El Hachem, English adaptation by Mariella Succar

Along the Lebanese-Syrian border, a clandestine trade is generating enormous wealth for some operators, turning them into millionaires and even billionaires. 

Unlike real estate companies or tech hubs, this is a shadow economy built on the production and trafficking of Captagon.

The scale of the business is staggering. While the cost to produce a single Captagon pill is less than 50 cents, the price in Gulf markets ranges between $8 and $15, with millions of pills sold annually. Exact figures are difficult to determine due to the secretive and illegal nature of the market, but estimates suggest production exceeds one billion pills per year.

According to the Lebanese Anti-Narcotics Bureau, seizures over the past five years are as follows:

* 2020: 1,000,000 pills
* 2021: 30,000,000 pills
* 2022: 12,000,000 pills
* 2023: 12,000,000 pills
* 2024: 26,000,000 pills

This totals approximately 82 million pills, which, at $8 per pill, would generate a minimum of $650 million if sold legally.

The situation escalated sharply in 2025. In just nine months, seizures increased by 76% compared to the total of the previous five years, amounting to 145 million pills. 

This includes 75 million documented by the Internal Security Forces, 65 million seized by military intelligence during a major Wadi operation, and 5 million in Ferzol. The total value of these seizures is roughly $1.16 billion at $8 per pill.

The surge in seizures reflects major shifts in regional control. The weakening of Syria’s Assad regime led to the fall of its Captagon empire, while the diminished influence of Hezbollah in Lebanon allowed state and military forces to strengthen oversight of smuggling routes, disrupt trafficking networks, and raid dozens of production facilities.

Authorities say the early months of 2025 signal a turning point in Lebanon and Syria’s fight against Captagon, offering a real opportunity to curb production and mitigate the social, security, and economic crises generated by this illicit trade.