Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Libya Now Accepting Applications for Banks
Libya is opening its economy to allow private businesses to be run there. UniCredit, HSBC, Standard Charted, and numerous others have all applied for lucrative licenses to operate in the North African country. The oil-rich state has remained a closed economy for quite some time and is known politically as a totalitarian state. Farhat Bengdara, the governor of the Central Bank of Lybia, the equivalent of our Ben Bernanke, disclosed that the government of Lybia will award two licenses to operate a private bank in the country and will offer the chosen banks the licenses in July. Bergdara said, "Opening up the financial sector to foreign participantion is proceeding according to initiatives that are part of a gradual strategy. Our aim is that by 2012 Tripoli would become an international financial center for the region." Exactly what it means to hold a license is anyone's guess, but it is clear that the foreign partner will have management rights as well as a 49% stake in the venture. Lybian partners would own the remaining 51%; however, individual ownership would be capped at 15%.
It should be interesting to what Lybia in the upcoming few months as its economy transitions from years of public operation to a being based on a quasi-private economic model. Ambitious goals, perhaps Gaddafi actually cares about his legacy...
It should be interesting to what Lybia in the upcoming few months as its economy transitions from years of public operation to a being based on a quasi-private economic model. Ambitious goals, perhaps Gaddafi actually cares about his legacy...
# posted by jn @ 8:56 PM 
