Dr. Wissam Fattouh, Secretary-General of the Union of Arab Banks, stated to the “National News Agency” that holding the conference in Beirut is “a clear message of Arab confidence, and practical evidence of Lebanon’s recovery of its role, and that its banking sector is capable of revival and regaining its position.”
He pointed out that “the quality of participants this year is the differentiating factor in the conference, as high-level Arab and foreign banking and financial delegations come to Beirut believing in its role and position.” Among these are finance ministers, governors of Arab central banks, and banking leaders from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar. In addition to broad banking participation from 20 Arab countries.
He also pointed out that “the meeting of the Union’s Board of Directors and the General Assembly will be held on the sidelines of the conference for the first time since 2018, to discuss investment projects in Lebanon, including the establishment of a conference center or a regional banking training center, in a step that Fattouh describes as “a practical translation of support for Lebanon and its institutions.”
Fattouh affirmed that this high-level Arab presence and the honoring of banking leaders in Beirut “constitute clear evidence of the Lebanese capital’s return to its natural role as an Arab financial center.”
