BOS renames Banque de la Bekaa SAL
as Emirates Lebanon Bank
New bank to operate with total equity of US$150 million
Bank of Sharjah announced today that it is in the process of changing the name of its wholly owned subsidiary from Banque de la Bekaa SAL Lebanon to Emirates Lebanon Bank SAL “ELBank”.
Mr. Varouj Nerguizian, Chairman and General Manager of ELBank, stated that the capital of the new entity will be increased to US$ 50 million plus a cash contribution of US$ 100 million in order to reach a total equity of US$ 150 million.
The change of the name, the capital increase and the cash contribution were recently approved by the Central Bank of Lebanon and will become effective upon completion of all related formalities.
Bank of Sharjah, through Emirates Lebanon Bank, will gradually build its franchise throughout the Middle East region and ELBank will be considered the platform for the bank’s future expansion in the Levant where it intends to benefit from exceptionally strong synergies with its Gulf-based clientele.
Fitch Ratings have recently confirmed the ratings of Bank of Sharjah, including the Long-Term Issuer Default rating of “A-” in recognition of the bank’s consistently strong financial performance, asset quality, liquidity and capitalisation.
