Reviewed file photo — Karan Jain / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/); Banque du Liban sign, June 5, 2011. Unaltered monetary-sector context; not the finance ministry, a commercial bank or current talks.
Lebanese banks dispute Eurobond tax treatment as finance ministry seeks review
Independent reports describe bank objections; Jaber says no new taxes or assessments have been issued at this stage.
Lebanon’s finance ministry and commercial banks are in a dispute over the tax treatment of Eurobond losses and provisions, according to independent reporting published by An-Nahar on November 1 and Asharq Al-Awsat on November 2. The reports describe discussions over the ministry’s request to review bank tax declarations.
Banks argue that the treatment can turn dollar losses into apparent gains in Lebanese pounds. Asharq Al-Awsat puts their estimate of potential tax exposure at $500–600 million. This is the banks’ estimate, not a final bill or an agreed settlement.
Finance Minister Yassine Jaber told An-Nahar that no new taxes were being introduced and that the ministry had not issued tax assessments at this stage. He said the banks concerned were invited to discuss their files. The accompanying 2011 photograph shows Banque du Liban for financial-sector context.
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