Lebanese banks have been increasingly tightening withdrawal limits since November 2019, as Lebanon’s economic crisis continues to make the country’s average employee struggle to make ends meet or to make any other form of financial planning.
With new sanctions and limits announced out of nowhere each and every day, depositors are truly unable to get into a debacle with their banks when it comes to the withdrawal of their own money.
Established in 1997, Infopro has become a leading source of timely and accurate information about a range of subject-matters under market and economic research.
The company has an established market research division operating under InfoPro Research.
It is a leading provider of research to large and medium-sized companies in Lebanon, including banking, insurance, FMCG, construction, and technologies. It is a prime research contractor to the World Bank and several UN organizations.
In its latest report in partnership with Retail Banking Monitor, Infopro’s research branch released the lastest withdrawal limits of banks as of February 7, 2020.
Simply titled “Banking Limits (LL & USD),” the report breaks down each bank’s withdrawal limits via ATM and over the counter, as well as daily, weekly, and monthly.
Bank Byblos, Credit Libanais, and Saradar bank, currently take the lead with 6 million Lebanese pounds and 5 million Lebanese pounds daily respectively.
According to the report, withdrawing Lebanese pounds should not prove to be an obstacle. The report does, however, depict a different reality for the withdrawal of US Dollars from both the ATM or over the counter.
The limits are as low as 200 USD per week, no matter how much is in your bank account, in banks such as BBAC, Credit Libanais, and BLC Bank.
One of the most strict banks, SGBL has a painfully low 100 US Dollar withdrawal limit from ATMs or over the counter for any depositor no matter how much is deposited in their accounts.
The painful reality of these withdrawal limits on US Dollars has forced almost every industry in the country to deal with “black market prices.” It has left the average citizen’s lives getting more and more expensive on a whim, each day without any warning.
For the detailed Infopro report, visit here.
According to two surveys conducted by InfoPro as well, over 60,000 people have lost their jobs since the end of November, which brings the total number of jobs lost since October to a staggering 220,000.
