Wazni Rejects ABL Decision on Closing Banks for 2 Weeks

Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni on Monday expressed his rejection of a decision by the Association of Banks in Lebanon to close banks until March 29 over the coronavirus crisis, urging the public prosecution to take “swift action.”

Accusing ABL of breaching the government’s instructions on keeping banks open despite the closure of the majority of public and private institutions in the country, Wazni described the Association’s move as “rushed.”

“It ignores the necessity to facilitate people’s needs, even at a bare minimum, as stipulated by Cabinet’s resolutions,” Wazni told the National News Agency.

The Cabinet had on Sunday announced that the closure order does not involve the central bank, commercial banks, money transfer and distribution companies and money exchange shops, asking them to “operate in the minimum capacity needed to facilitate daily works.”

ABL announced Monday that the country’s banks will close until March 29 except for operations related to ATMs, salaries and the food, oil and medical sectors.

ABL said its decision comes in response to a demand by the employees’ union to close during the lockdown period out of “keenness on the safety of banks’ employees, clients and their families.”

Naharnet