EU seizes $130m assets linked to money laundering in Lebanon
Al JazeeraJUL 2022
Ultimately this move doesn't change much in terms of the daily realities for the vast majority of Lebanese, who are suffering from increasingly painful economic hardship. This move largely affects bank owners, as they will now have to front losses valued at around $7B-$8B. Regardless, it will not help the government unlock the IMF's loan package nor help alleviate the current crisis.
Progress is undoubtedly slow, but this latest move is a much-needed first step toward unifying the country's multiple exchange rates, which are particularly harmful to Lebanon's economy as they provoke distortions in the market and open opportunities for rent-seeking and corruption. However, this is just one piece of the puzzle, and further policy reforms must accompany this move immediately.
Regardless of what is happening economically or politically, it is well-known that the governor of Lebanon's central bank, Riad Salameh, will find a way to profit from it. Lebanon is at the mercy of the global financial system, which is dominated by the West, and its ultimately Salameh and his foreign backers who control Lebanon's central bank and the parallel exchange rate.