Unlock the publisher’s digest free
Roula Khalaf, editor -in -chief of the FT, selects her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
The Syrian central bank has stolen from new banknotes from Russia to mitigate a serious shortage of money that has left its savings to operate.
The central bank said on Friday that Syrian books had arrived “from Russia to Syria via Damascus International Airport” but had not confirmed the amount of money. Money was seriously necessary after bankers and companies said the shortage was seriously hampered.
The Flight Underscores an Area of Continuing Dependence On Russia for Syria’s New Government, Which Faces Difficult in Procuring Banknotes from the West Because of Sanctions on the State, forcing it to Negotiate the Delivery from a country that was closely allied with the overthrown of Bashar al-Assad.
A manufacturer of textiles and retailers, who asked not to be appointed, said that the shortage had reached the point where “people have stopped putting money to the bank because they fear that they cannot not remove it ”.
Rumors had circulated on Syrian social media on the arrival of impatient tickets, but the central bank said on Friday that “the figures circulating on the size and quantities of this money” were “completely inaccurate”, without confirmation of details.
Foreign Minister Asaad Al-Shaibani told Financial Times last month that, under the government of Assad, the Central Bank would order printed money shipping from Russia if necessary. Goznak, the Russian printer managed by the state, provides noteswhich must be constantly replaced.
Western ticket printers could not immediately complete supplies and would be reluctant to provide money in Syria in light of continuous sanctions against the country, according to ticket experts, leaving the new government dependent for the Goznak for the moment.
It also remains clear if the new diet seeks to remove Syrian tickets out of traffic. One of the two most used notes, the 2000 Syrian book bill has the image of Assad, who now lives in Russia.
The central bank has raised a temporary limit of withdrawals at the end of last month, but commercial and commercial customers who are looking for species with banks are still frequently refused.
Some private banks have received up to 600 million sterling pounds (around $ 65,000 on the widely used black market) every day of the central bank in recent weeks, two bankers have told Financial Times, speaking under the cover of anonymity.
The amount is far from being sufficient to keep businesses afloat, according to businessmen. Manufacturers and merchants cannot access most of their bank deposits to pay suppliers and wages.
“Traders paid employees in their [cash] Reservations, and it worked for two months, but how long could they last? Said a banker.
Transfers between banks are always available, with businessmen occasionally using this method to buy and sell goods – a system that a merchant compared to “pseudo trotering”.
The impact of the cash shortage has been exacerbated by a lack of information on the number of Syrian books in circulation.
Unlike most central banks, Syria does not produce weekly declarations with details on the amount of tickets in circulation. Its website is inaccessible, adding to the opacity surrounding its operations.
Tickets are often destroyed and removed from traffic daily due to wear, central banks around the world constantly reconstructing their stock.
The private banking system of two decades in Syria was mainly used for commercial purposes, citizens tending to keep their own money.
The trend of people to avoid the banking system has increased in the years preceding the fall of Assad when the regime began to request financial information from the small number of private banks from Syria in order to apply Ad Ad Hoc on large employees.
The Syrian economy had already been broken by 13 years of civil war, generalized corruption within the framework of the Assad regime and Western sanctions, including in its banking sector.
Companies say that, despite the generalized euphoria which welcomed Assad’s avoidance, their sales fell. Some are also under pressure after the abolition of export restrictions, which means that they must now sell existing shares at a loss.
“People don’t spend because they don’t know what’s going to happen,” said the textile businessman. “Companies do not spend because there are no cash income, and the main priority is to pay employees.”
Western governments, for their part, have maintained most of the sanctions against Syria and its banking sector in place. Some officials, including the EU, have written Road cards for softening measurements in stages.
“There are a number of signs of confusion and lack of clarity,” said Jihad Yazigi, editor -in -chief of report Syria. “Economy is a big problem. . . A crucial test for new Damascus authorities will be to ensure [a] regular supply of. . . energy and bread and, more generally, ensure that the economy restarts. »»
