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The Banks of Libya
There are about ten major banks in
Libya: the Central Bank of Libya,
the Agricultural Bank, the National
Commercial Bank, the Commerce
&
Development Bank, the Arab Foreign
Bank, the Savings and Real Estate Investment Bank, the Sahara
Bank, al-Jamahiriya Bank, the Umma Bank, and the Wahda Bank.
Although all the above banks are
state-controlled banks, the Libyan government passed a law
in 1993 which allows the public to establish private sector banks in Libya; and
now even foreign companies began buying shares in Libyan banks, after the Libyan
government began to allow foreign banks to take part in preparing the country
for the development planned ahead. It was reported that six big lenders,
including HSBC Holding PLC and Standard Chartered PLC, were short-listed for
two banking licenses in Libya. The BNP Paribas of France owns 19 percent of Sahara
Bank; while the Arab Bank of Jordan has a similar stake in Wahda Bank. The Libyan
Arab Foreign Bank implements the international functions of the Central Bank
of Libya through subsidiaries in some 20 foreign countries. Libya has also started
granting "banking licences" in 2011 to foreign banks to operate in
Libya in partnership with local Libyan businesses, such as the licence
granted to the Italian Unicredit.
The Libyan National Payment System (NPS):
Although the Libyan monetary system is rapidly catching up with the current international standards, there are a number of issues that still are under development; at the top of which rests the introduction of electronic monetary systems into the various financial services. These systems will be electronically linked via fiber optic technologies and digital and wireless satellites systems, using sophisticated encryption procedures to ensure the safety of the transmitted transactions. Article (5) of the Banking Law (1) of the year 2005 categorically capacitates the Central Bank of Libya to supervise the development of the NPS. In a joint cooperative project with various commercial banks, the CBL has began to implement the latest developments in information technology to modernise the NPS. As a result, foreign companies were awarded contracts to supervise the development of the following systems:
Core Banking System (CBS): a system to develop technologies to enable businesses and banks to benefit from the National Payment System and improve their global relations.
Automated Teller Machines (ATM): an electronic system of money distribution and balance keeping for the customers of all the participating banks, via automated teller machines (ATM).
Automated Checks Processing (ACP): an inter-banks electronic system to oversee the clearing of cheques and settling their values.
Automated Clearing House (ACH): all banks need to settle their accounts and transactions with their clients before reaching the RTGS (see below).
Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS): an electronic system which forces all financial bodies, such as banks, to settle all transaction accounts with the Central Bank of Libya at the end of each business day.
Points Of Sales (POS): an electronic system enabling businesses and customers to execute electronic payments at points of sales.
List of The Main Banks in Libya:
African Bank of Trade and Investment
Address: Tripoli Tower, 2nd Floor,
No. 28, P.O. Box 12132, Tripoli,
Libya
Tel.: (21) 3351405
Agricultural Bank
Address: al-Swihli Square, P.O. Box
1110, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 333541 - 333544
Alejmaa Alarabi Bank
Address: al-Sherif Street, P.O. Box
17551, Benghazi, Libya
Tel.: (61) 9090128 - 9096679
Alsaraya (As-Saraya) Trading And Development Bank
Address: Mizran Street, Tripoli,
Libya
Tel.: (21) 4447692 - 4445106
AL-Umma Bank
Address: Omar al-Mokhtar Street,
P.O. Box 685, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 3332888 - 3331195
Al-Wafa Bank
Web: alwafabank.com
Address: al-Falah Street, P.O. Box
84212, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 4815124
Aman (Alaman) Bank For Commerce
&
Investment
Web: abci-ly.com
Address: Dat al-Imad Complex, Tower
3, P.O. Box 91271, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 3350216 - 3350219
Aman Bank Building
Hay Alandulus, P.O. Box: 6296, Tripoli, Libya
Tel: (21) 4780072
Bank of Commerce
&
Development
Address: Frusiya Building For Investment,
P.O. BOX 5045, Benghazi, Libya
Tel.: (61) 9097300
Bank of Valleta PLC
Address: Borj Tarabolous (Tripoli Tower), Ground Floor, Office 49,
P.O. Box 93299, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 3351661-3
Web: bov.com
British Arab Commercial Bank (BACB)
Web: bacb.co.uk/
Address: Tripoli Tower, Floor 15,
no. 154, P.O. Box 91051, Tripoli,
Libya
Tel.: (21) 335 1489
Central Bank of Libya (the monetary authority in Libya)
cbl.gov.ly/
Address: P.O. Box 1103, Tripoli,
Libya
Tel.: (21) 3333591-99
Development Bank
Address: P.O Box 3180, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 4446622 - 4802046
Gumhouria Bank
Address: P.O. Box 0465004, Gharyan,
Libya
Tel.: (41) 631960-61
Libyan Foreign Bank
lafbank.com
Address: Dat al-Imad Complex, Tower
2, P.O. Box 3180, Tripoli
Tel.: (21) 3350155 - 3350168
Mediterranean Bank
Web: meditbank.net
Address: Omar al-Mokhtar Street,
P.O. Box 410, Benghazi, Libya
Tel.: (61) 9098386 - 9091048 - 9098106
National Banking Corporation
Address: Addahra, Ben Walid Street, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 4448623-4449730
National Commercial Bank
Web: ncb.ly/ar/
Address: Orouba Street, P.O. Box
543, Libya, al-Bayda
Tel.: (21) 3612429 - 3612267 - 3617977
Saving and Real-Estate Investment
Bank
Address: Khalifa al-Zaidi Street,
P.O. Box 2289, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 4449306 - 4449308 - 4449310
Sahara Bank (al-Sahari Bank)
Web: saharabank.com.ly
Address: 1st September Street, P.O.
Box 720, Tripoli, Libya
Tel.: (21) 3332771 - 4442920
United Bank For Trade & Investment
Gurji Road
Tripoli
Web: ubci.ly
Wahda Bank
Web: wahdabank.org/english/index.asp
Address: Omar Abulfadeel Square, P.O. Box 452, Benghazi, Libya
Tel.: (61) 24519 - 24142 - 24256 - 24250
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