The Governor of the Lebanese Central Bank Riad Salameh denied the existence of a liquidity crisis in the country, stressing that "the Lebanese banks meet the demand of customers of the US dollar, with the possibility of withdrawing from ATMs in most banks," stressing that "the dollar is available in Lebanon, and what we see in social media, and sometimes the media, is amplified and has its goals."
Salameh explained that "any procedures for ATMs are due to the policy of each bank separately," pointing out that "any transaction that the customer cannot make through ATMs can take place through the bank's outlets." Some companies are forced to turn to exchange offices to meet their hard currency needs, paying more than the official price of 1507.5 Lebanese pounds to the dollar. Fuel distributors have been on strike last week because banks do not provide them with the dollars needed to pay for imports.
He said that the reasons for the lack of the dollar in some places maybe logistical, knowing that there was no complaint to the Bank of Lebanon in this regard, where the Central Bank reserves of more than $38.5 billion, which is present in the market, and no need for exceptional measures.
Source (Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, Edited)
