Syria
EU places sanctions on new Syrian central bank governor
Duraid Durgham placed under asset freeze and travel ban due to “support for Syrian regime”; Syrian currency under severe pressure from war and sanctions
Syrian central bank slashes exchange rate as currency pressure grows
Central bank allows sharp depreciation of currency and adopts more flexible approach to setting peg, clamping down on black market trading
Chatham House paper tries to quantify Syrian economic breakdown
Devastation from war, displacement of millions and oil and gas production falling into the hands of Isis and Kurdish forces have combined to create economic disaster
EU court throws out Syrian governor’s sanctions challenge
Adib Mayaleh will remain under EU sanctions after court rejects his challenge to restrictions imposed in 2012; Central Bank of Iran court case ongoing
Filipino central bank launches exchange facility for nationals fleeing Syria
Filipino workers returning from Syria will have four months to change currency, as Syrian pounds and Philippine pesos are not otherwise convertible
Arab Spring countries boast higher credit limits, says Finnish paper
Bank of Finland research shows Middle Eastern and North African countries that experienced uprisings lend more to small businesses
Syrian governor addresses banknote printing rumours
Adib Mayyaleh says new notes are produced only to replace worn-out ones; slams reports that extra currency has been added into circulation
Canada cracks down on Syrian central bank
Canada imposes asset freeze on Central Bank of Syria; foreign affairs minister reiterates demand that president Assad step down
EU freezes assets of Syrian central bank
Council of the European Union announces freeze on central bank assets among string of sanctions; EU “increasingly appalled” by situation in the country, says council
EU vows fresh sanctions against Syrian central bank
European Union due to impose freeze on Central Bank of Syria's assets as part of efforts to strengthen sanctions against the Syrian government
Lebanon’s Salame vows to apply Syria sanctions
Bank of Lebanon governor Riad Salame says Lebanese banks will not undertake any activity in Syria that might embarrass correspondent banks
Bank of Lebanon denies financial ties with Syrian regime
Governor Riad Salameh says Arab League sanctions on Syria will not apply as Lebanese central bank does not have any dealings with Damascus
EU considers deeper sanctions against Syrian central bank
European Union considers further financial sanctions against Syria amid continued repression of Syrian people; EU foreign affairs committee to discuss on Monday
RBA places eight more people on financial sanctions list
Reserve Bank of Australia freezes assets of eight people associated with Syrian Al-Assad regime and one person linked to Qadhafi regime; 17 Zimbabweans taken off the financial sanctions list
Qatar to keep riyal pegged to dollar
Abdullah al-Thani, the governor of the Qatar Central Bank, said that the riyal would remain pegged to the US dollar on Tuesday.
Syria to abandon dollar peg in July
The governor of Syria's central bank, Adib Mayelah, announced that the country will abandon the Syrian pound 's peg to the dollar in an effort to stem rising costs and inflation.
Syria, Austria sign MoU
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Central Bank of Syria (CBS) and the Austrian National Bank on Thursday 22 March.
Syria says it will peg pound to SDR
Syria plans to remove the pound from its U.S. dollar peg and link it to the International Monetary Fund's special drawing rights (SDR) in the first half of 2007, the central bank governor told Reuters on Monday 30 October.
Reserve diversification - Danger for the dollar
According to this article published Tuesday 17 October by Daily FX, Russia has reignited the hot topic of reserve diversification and this time it is to the benefit of the Yen.
Official says Syria converts some reserves to euro
The governor of Syria's central bank was quoted by AP on Tuesday 10 October as saying that the bank had converted half of its foreign currency reserves from U.S. dollars to euros.
Syria, Lebanon sign memorandum on money laundering
Syria and Lebanon signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday 24 May to fight money laundering and terrorist financing, the Syrian News Agency SANA reported.
Third Euro-Mediterranean central bank seminar
The third Euro-Mediterranean seminar, which brings together Eurosystem and non-euro area Mediterranean central banks, was jointly organised by the Bank of Greece and the European Central Bank and held in Nafplion on 25 January.
Call for new central bank rules in Syria
This article looks at what it calls the 'erratic' actions of the central bank of Syria in its interest rate setting policy. It calls for the introduction of new rules and practices into the system to regain confidence.
Syria issues money laundering law
The Syrian President has issued a decree providing the legal framework to combat money laundering in the country, according to a report by AME Info. The law improves the legal framework of the banking system and creates a new authority affiliated to the…