Lebanon joins European Bank for Reconstruction & Development

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) expects to start local operations in the second quarter of 2017. The move has been approved by Parliament.

“The necessary measures to open the bank’s local office will be taken once the Parliament’s decision is published in the Official Gazette,” said a person familiar with the matter.

“Lebanon has become a shareholder in EBRD and its stake is the same size as that of similar states,” the source said.

According to the source, the country will benefit from EBRD’s financing for public and private sector projects. Funding the private sector could be through loans or through acquisition of shares in the capital of local companies.

Founded in 1991, EBRD is a multilateral development bank that supports market-based economies. It operates in more than 30 countries across Europe, including the southern, as well as the eastern Mediterranean regions, and central Asia.

Arab countries benefiting from its investments are Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia.

EBRD is 57 percent owned by the G7 countries and 84 percent by the member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Its subscribed capital was 29.7 billion euros ($32 billion) at the end of 2016.