The Euromoney Lebanon Conference took place today on 31 May 2016, at the InterContinental Phoenicia Hotel in Beirut.
The one-day event, supported by the Banque du Liban and the Capital Markets Authority, brought together (350) high-level government officials, investors, financiers, business leaders and entrepreneurs from Lebanon and around the world to explore how the growing digital scene can be nurtured, how the capital markets can be revitalised, and how Lebanon can position itself again as a major player in regional finance.
Organised by Euromoney Conferences – the world’s leading organiser of conferences for cross-border investment and capital markets – the event also attracted a significant number of international delegates from further afield, including attendees from Bahrain, Jordan, France, Egypt, Turkey the United Kingdom, the United States of America and elsewhere.
H.E. Mr Riad Salamé the Governor of the Banque du Liban opened the conference. His remarks were followed by keynote interviews with Saad Azhari, Chairman and General Manager of BLOM Bank “The most important step in making banks a key catalyst in fostering a digital/innovation ecosystem in Lebanon has already started, thanks to the Central Bank’s Circular 331, issued in mid-2014. To date, three large funds have emerged as the leading vehicle for a startup investment, which makes the total banks’ commitment to the IT ecosystem close to 350 million dollars”,
and Samir Hanna, Group Chief Executive Officer of Bank Audi/Banque Audi, “the Bank has made and will continue making substantial investments in technology for years now”, and that “Bank Audi’s diversified expansion in ultra developed markets like Turkey has widely contributed to such projects”. He also emphasized that “the Bank is keen on encouraging its employees to suggest technology-related ideas and initiatives, especially since the staff has easy access to the institution’s decision-makers who can bring those ideas to life.”
The opening panel and keynote interviews set the scene for the day’s discussions, focusing on the current macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape, discussing Lebanon’s economy and the development of its banking and financial sector in terms of liquidity, governance and innovation. Experts also examined how Lebanon is developing its digital financial and business ecosystem featuring speeches, interactive debates, and live interviews, granting a closer view of the relationship between entrepreneurialism, finance and technology.
Firas Safieddine, Executive Board Member of the Capital Markets Authority also took part in a one-on-one interview live on stage discussing new initiatives at the CMA including their Electronic Trading Platform (ETP). This was followed by an interactive special debate discussing the right financial exit strategy for start-ups and a high-level panel of experts who looked at developing local capital markets in Lebanon. Despite the challenges created by the current economic climate and the relatively small size of the market and investor base, Lebanon has significant strategic advantages on account of its well-developed professional services industry, numerous sophisticated financial institutions and other key market players.
The discussions acknowledged the difficulties faced in Lebanon and were under no illusions as to the global and local challenges. Overall the conference set an optimistic tone for Lebanon’s bight future as a regional hub for technology and provided an insightful and informative experience for the high profile local and international audience.
At the event Victoria Behn, Director, Middle East and Africa at Euromoney Conferences said, “Our thanks go to His Excellency the Governor and the teams at the Banque du Liban, the CMA and all our sponsors for their continued support.” She added, “Our moderators we will be drawing up key recommendations on how Lebanon can build and finance its digital future.”