CBL buoyant about the economy and the impact of his policies

The Bank of Lebanon inaugurated yesterday its third annual international startups business accelerator conference at Forum De Beyrouth (http://bit.ly/2fBnb4U) under the theme ‘innovation: entrepreneurship inside the big companies and entrepreneurships in general’. Some 20 thousand participants from all over the world attended the biggest platform in the Middle East region which will last till November 5. The two leading guests at the conference were: the main speaker, Steve Weznyak , Apple founding partner and Toni Fadel, the Lebanese American inventor, Senior Vice President of the iPod division at Apple and founder of Nest- the hardware firm acquired in billions by Google in 2014.  The director of the Executive Office of the Central Bank (CBL) Governor pointed out in her opening address that the conference comes as part of the implementation of the Bank’s Circular No. 331 aimed at motivating banks on investment in startups. Riad Salameh, the Central Bank Governor for his part, underlined the essential role of knowledge-based economy in the future of Lebanon, stressing that the purpose of guarantees provided by Bank of Lebanon to commercial banks is to create a job generating sector that enhances the effectiveness and competitiveness of the national economy. Salameh revealed that the foreign assets of the Central Bank have achieved a record exceeding USD 40 billion, noting that the formation of a new cabinet will eventually attract foreign contribution and, hence, will reduce the cost of the Syrian refugee presence in the country (estimated at nearly 5% of the GDP). Following the opening session, a panel discussion was held during which Fadel shared his years of experience in startups and in the technology and knowledge sector. Fadel gave attendees tips and instructions about the stages of founding a business. In the same vein, the president of Beirut Merchants Association and chairof the Alumni Association of AUB, Nicola Shammas, commended the Bank of Lebanon Circular 331 which, he said, contributed to capital infusion (up to USD 500 million) in support of emerging companies. (Al Diyar, Al Mustaqbal, As Safir, An Nahar, November 4, 2016)