Lebanon's pound hits new bottom, ahead of Riad Salameh interrogation
A French judge arrived in Lebanon this week to question central bank head Riad Salameh over his alleged financial crimes.
Lebanon’s currency fell to another historic low against the US dollar on Tuesday, on the eve of central bank chief Riad Salameh being summoned to appear before visiting European investigators.
Lebanese media outlets reported that the rate fell to 100,00 pounds to the dollar, down from 80,000 last month. The website Lira Rate said the pound is trading at 99,500 to the dollar.
AFP also reported on Monday that Salameh "has been summoned to appear" at 10:00 am local time on Wednesday before investigators from France, Luxembourg and Belgium regarding a probe into his personal wealth.
Background: The Lebanese pound, aka the lira, has lost more than 90% of its value since 2019. The crisis has been in the making for years. Starting in 1997, the Lebanese pound was pegged to the US dollar at a rate of 1,507 pounds to the dollar. The rate on the street corresponded to the official one. Lebanon is heavily dependent on imports, and relies on US dollars for this as well as the fixed exchange rate.
