Byblos expands in Iraq

Byblos Bank opens its third Iraqi branch in Basra

Byblos Bank announced that it has opened a new branch in the Iraqi city of Basra. The bank started operations in Iraq in May 2007 through a branch in Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan. It opened its Baghdad branch in February 2010.

The Basra branch will offer corporate, commercial, and correspondent banking services, including payments, letters of credit, and letters of guarantee, among other services. The operations of Byblos Bank’s three branches in Iraq are centralized at the Group's head office in Beirut.

Byblos Bank is one of three Lebanese banks with direct presence in Iraq. The Intercontinental Bank of Lebanon (IBL) established a branch in Erbil in 2006. Bank of Beirut and the Arab countries (BBAC) opened its first branch in Erbil in 2010. According to the Central Bank of Iraq, other Lebanese banks are also looking to tap the Iraqi market.