Regulatory Alerts2024-12-24 | 13683Exceptional measures for the gradual withdrawal of deposits in foreign currencies
The Central Bank of Lebanon, acting through its Governor, issued Intermediary Decision No. 13683 to amend Basic Decision No. 13335 by introducing exceptional, temporary withdrawal allowances for foreign currency deposits held in Special Branch Accounts. The decision grants eligible account holders who lifted bank secrecy two additional withdrawals in November 2024 and one each in December 2024, January 2025, and February 2025, raising their annual ceilings to 6,800 USD or 5,100 USD depending on their classification. Furthermore, it allows account holders with insufficient balances to top up within the new ceilings and mandates that liquidity for these extra withdrawals be secured through banks' mandatory foreign currency allocations at the Central Bank.