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The Governor of the Banque du Liban, Riad Salameh, said in an interview with Al-Hadath TV, that “as a ruler, I fulfill my duties to serve the Lebanese, and the accusations that have been made against me are not correct because at the end of the road if we seek a stable exchange rate of the Lebanese pound, this will also benefit the Lebanese and the development of the Lebanese banking business. We created subsidized loans that helped grow and this is a service for the Lebanese. We finance industry, agriculture, tourism and the knowledge economy, and this is to serve the Lebanese. It is shameful for some to say that I am corrupt and I cover the corrupt. “
He noted that “there are institutions that can hold the corrupt and politicians responsible, and one of the easiest things is to attack the governor of the Banque du Liban because he is independent and does not belong to anyone”, highlighting that “the deposits are in the banks and about $ 30 billion has been withdrawn. ” He said: “There is at least $ 600 million a month that is withdrawn to meet the needs of the Lebanese, and there is no bank that we bankrupt and the deposits are not in the central bank but in other banks, and the bank Central has ensured the necessary liquidity and the evidence is that no bank has declared bankruptcy. “
Salameh explained: “The Banque du Liban does not manage banks, but sets policies, and we have to ensure liquidity when banks need protection for depositors’ money, and these funds are present and used. You can ask about the amount of real estate. that have been bought and the investments that have been opened “.
When setting a ceiling for withdrawals in the Lebanese pound, he noted that “this issue exists in all countries because there is a ceiling for the monetary process, so how is the case in a country with crisis?”, Whereas “withdraw funds harm bank stability and after this step the work has been organized and there are no more. ” Chaos”.
On the other hand, Salameh pointed out that “Article 91 of the Currency and Credit Law allows the Central Bank to finance the Lebanese State when it requests it. We cannot confuse today the role of the government and the Bank of Lebanon, since the latter cannot take a position that is not legally permitted. “
“The decision taken by the Central Council is that the banks that do not commit to increase their capital by 20 percent, their shares will become the property of the central bank, and there will be a restructuring of the banks,” he said. He said: “We will work to reorganize and sell banks to preserve depositors’ money.”
Regarding the dollar exchange rate, the governor of the Banque du Liban stressed that “the decision to fix the exchange rate requires an agreement between the Treasury and the Bank of Lebanon, and we cannot make this decision on our own, and we await the approval of the Capital Control Law and a new policy related to the exchange rate, which will be based on elements The market so that speculation does not occur ”, highlighting that“ the money that came out of Lebanon is not in the quantity that some imagine, one billion and 100 million left Lebanon and it is not the main cause of the crisis ”.
On the other hand, he considered that “the discourse on the US sanctions against the Banque du Liban is imprecise and we have done everything necessary to keep the bank committed to financial globalization while all international decisions are implemented.”
Regarding the forensic financial audit, Salameh confirmed that he is with the audit and said: “We hand over our accounts as a central bank to the Ministry of Finance, and we will also hand over the accounts of the Lebanese state to the Ministry of Finance, which contracts with companies,” explaining that “the delivery of bank accounts needs to change the Monetary and Credit Law. After that, the bank accounts can be audited. “
Regarding the issue of subsidies, he said that “we have the possibility of staying two months with the support, and the state must develop a plan for this issue. We ensure everything the state needs because we want people to live well.”
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