The number of cleared checks during the first quarter of the year 2013 remained almost flat compared to the same period in 2012. The Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL) statistics showed that the number of cleared checks reached about 3.1 million totaling $17.35 billion.

The share of foreign currency denominated checks dropped to 78 percent, down by one percent year-on-year.

The number of returned checks fell by 12.3 percent compared y-o-y. The value of these checks also dropped by some 8.5 percent.