Interview: Syrian economy still "acceptable" after 2 years of crisis: head of Syria's largest bank

Source : Xinhua

DAMASCUS, March 17 (Xinhua) -- The head of the Commercial Bank of Syria (CBS), the largest bank in the country, said in a recent interview with Xinhua that "after two years of war in Syria and after this complicated crisis, I think the economy is still acceptable."

"I am totally satisfied with the results we have reached after two years of war... Because we don't have debt in the past, our economy is still good," Ahmed Diab said, raising prospects that the country would bypass this crisis very soon.

The prolonged crisis in Syria has had very bad effect on the country's economy and caused losses totaled, according to recent economic reports, at 220 billion U.S. dollars.

Some of world countries have showered Syria with non-stop economic sanctions to throttle the Syrian government and speed up its collapse. The banking sector was the main target by those sanctions despite the government's hectic efforts to keep it vital.

Diab admitted that the sanctions have some effects on the banks which are facing "some problems in making transfer."

However, he added: "Depending on our long experience, we could succeed in making all kinds of business for the public sector and most of the business also for the private sector."

"We got used to the sanctions and even the Syrian people got used to these difficulties and sanctions," he went on saying.

The Syrian pound has lost 50 percent of its value and prices of almost all commodities and food stuff have either doubled or tripled.

Last year, the CBS espoused the policy of interference to maintain a stable price for the pound in exchange for the dollar. It has succeeded in the past, but within the past three months, the pound sharply decreased and the bank's efforts were of no avail and couldn't stop further depreciation.

One U.S. dollar is sold in the black market at 106 pounds, the highest figure over the past two years. Shortly before the crisis, the dollar stood at 46 pounds.

Diab, however, confirmed that the Central Bank is still moving on with the policy of interference.

Diab said that what happened in Syria is worse than what happened in Iraq or other countries, but "If we compared (our economy) with other economies that experienced the same conditions and circumstances that we faced in Syria, I think we are in a good condition... Their economies collapsed very quickly."

"The priority for the government and the Central Bank of Syria is to keep a good price for the pound and to protect it," he said.

"We are working to fix the price of the Syrian pound. We have had the same price for the pound in exchange for the dollar for two months," he continued.

Diab said that the CBS, which was found in 1968 after the nationalization of private banks, has deposits of about 324 billion Syrian pounds (in Syrian pounds and foreign currency).