BEIRUT, May 16 (NNN-NNA) – Lebanese Finance Minister, Ghazi Wazne, said on Friday that, Lebanon may cut down half of the number of banks operating in the country, by restructuring the banking sector, a local media outlet reported.
“We have a total of 49 commercial banks and we will reduce the number gradually in different ways, including mergers,” Wazne was quoted as saying by Elnashra, a local independent online newspaper.
Consolidation has raised concern among depositors about the impact on their accounts, as analysts say it might be difficult, for at least the large depositors, to avoid losses.
Lebanon is currently negotiating with the International Monetary Fund, over a strategy plan aimed at restructuring the country’s debt and the banking sector.
The banks are among the main capital sources of the Lebanese government for the past 30 years.
