[ad_1]
The days of adversity increase the determination of the Lebanese, so they emerge victorious from the crises that are imposed on them, especially due to the economic hardships that have gripped the country since October 2019, the date of the outbreak of unprecedented protests, in opposition to a terrible economic reality.
Lebanese fight unemployment with raw meat, and the bulk of them refuse to sit at home with their hands tied due to an arbitrary exchange used by most institutions, or to pay what is known as “half salary” , as well as the collapse of the national currency against the US dollar, and its loss equivalent to 87% of its value. The previous one, before the exchange rate of the US dollar rose and crossed the threshold of 1,500 pounds.
“I worked with checks”, a phrase that many repeat these days in response to a question about how to manage their affairs, a profession that has approached a profession that does not require a large capital, since it depends more on the availability of several bank accounts that allow its practitioner to withdraw what the banks have of dollars in cash and money in currency. Wataniya according to specific caps to withdraw the latter on the price of what has become known as the “market dollar”, that is, the electronic platform of the Bank of Lebanon, which allows the bank customer to release a fraction of their deposits to the month that does not exceed two thousand US dollars at a price of 3900 Lebanese pounds per dollar, in exchange for reaching the dollar in available cash. On the black market, the threshold of nine thousand pounds.
Almost every month, the Central Bank of Lebanon issues a circular that fixes the price of the “market dollar”. A price that rises due to the high exchange rate of the dollar, and has not dropped a day since the launch of the electronic platform service.
The bank customer withdraws an amount of cash at the “market dollar” exchange rate, that is, 3900 pounds, and buys a check with it, the price of which is paid in Lebanese pounds, and makes a surplus profit in the national currency which exceeds one million Lebanese pounds for an amount of one thousand dollars paid in the national currency. As long as the client can withdraw, he can buy and increase his share of the earnings in national currency, which helps him pay fees in the national currency, even though the sum is in US dollars, so he benefits from payment according to the official exchange rate of 1500 pounds, in banks that allow it for clients who do not have Accounts in US dollars, in addition to the fact that the Lebanese insure their needs in terms of food, fuel and medicine, in the “most difficult moment” economically for the Lebanese, whom he did not know even during the height of the civil war.
The stories differ for the Lebanese, who deal monthly with banking decisions that they describe as unfair and talk about attacking them through them to restrict their movement to get a small part of their money seized in Lebanese pounds, in an attempt by the banks of stop “check trading,” which many describe as not violating public law.
Ali, who is a media colleague, talks about the “intelligence” of a bank manager when asked about transferring an amount from an account for his youngest daughter to withdraw in cash through a bank card he issued for such finish. “I said: Who opened this account, I am the mother of my daughter? And when he saw that the account opening date goes back to my daughter’s birthday, I reluctantly paused. A month later, I was surprised that the amount was reduced to the equivalent of $ 500, which I can withdraw through the “market price”, on the pretext that the procedure is for the minor’s expenses.
“Several bank accounts that are periodically reviewed by us from one side, and contravene the simplest rules of contracts between two parties (…)”. The speech is for the fiftieth lawyer Tawfiq, who adds: “Once, a bank manager asked me about my relationship with my brother, when I wanted to transfer a small amount to him so that he could withdraw what he has available each month. I said to the director: The answer to the relationship with my brother is included in your question.
Bishara, who forcibly retired after the closure of a famous restaurant where he worked as a manager, turned to “check trading, which allows me to collect my previous salary, in an amount that helps me face the challenges of life, and I decided not to apply for a job, I know in advance that I will not get it. ” I spend my journal walking and breathing fresh air, and I wait for the beginning of the month to do my banking. At the very least, I increase my cashless account, which helps me endure a longer period in terms of spending my money. “
The same applies to some Lebanese residing in the Gulf, as one of their relatives moves their accounts in agreement with a legal agency. “You get what I lost in terms of interest by increasing the dollars on my books, so my account will increase by 20% per year.”
On the other hand, merchants benefit from the sale of checks in Lebanese pounds, for which they collect the value of their invoices paid to customers in non-monetary dollars at a price of up to three thousand Lebanese pounds, instead of 1,500 pounds according to the official exchange rate. And the stories are similar between a merchant who sells tons of iron daily, and another who owns an establishment that sells appliances for construction workshops, to the owner of a gallery that sells furniture … they all decided to enter the check market to move your business out of stagnation, and diversify between getting available cash dollars and other amounts. In Lebanese pounds to ensure the continuity of your business, limit losses and avoid closure.
Many stories in the Lebanese financial dailies are complex and unusual for Lebanese who have suffered greatly and who are unanimous in their unprecedented confrontations and challenges that threaten their daily strength and may topple the “harvest of life.”
“Diaries of necessity” and “wars of survival” in the Lebanese style, where bank checks are withheld to “strengthen firmness and pass the stage with the least losses”, without showing a ray of hope to get out of the “narrow financial tunnel”.
Source: Kuwait News
[ad_2]
