Lebanese Judge Orders Asset Freezes for Individuals Tied to Major Banks

FILE PHOTO: A view of Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view of Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
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Lebanese Judge Orders Asset Freezes for Individuals Tied to Major Banks

FILE PHOTO: A view of Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view of Lebanon's Central Bank building in Beirut, Lebanon April 23, 2020. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo

A Lebanese judge has ordered a protective freeze of some properties and company stakes of 14 individuals with links to some of Lebanon’s biggest banks, a move the lenders said could further isolate them from international financial networks.

The asset freezes, listed in a judicial document seen by Reuters, are part of a legal complaint lodged by lawyers belonging to a civil society group on behalf of Lebanese depositors.

Lebanon’s banks were once among the world’s more profitable lenders, funneling funds from a scattered diaspora into state coffers in return for high interest rates. But as Lebanon’s economic meltdown gathered pace and dollar remittaces dried up, the financial system was starved of funding.

The complaint accuses local banks, which have frozen customers out of their deposits and blocked them from transferring cash abroad since the crisis erupted in late 2019, of crimes including negligence and fraud.

Lenders have denied any wrongdoing and have repeatedly said that customers’ deposits are safe.

“The Lebanese banks, the majority of them, have taken over the deposits of their customers and then against the law lent these deposits to the government and to the central bank, which spent it on their international commitments and on salaries,” Hasan Bazy, one of the lawyers who brought the case forward, told Reuters, adding that more complaints would be forthcoming.

“These banks and their managers have assets in companies and have real estate and we wanted these to be blocked so that they can be used as a guarantee for the money of depositors in case it can’t be retrieved.”

A judicial source confirmed the judge’s decision, which can still be appealed by the individuals in question after they have been legally informed of the decision.

In response to the judge’s order, the Association of Lebanese Banks said it respected judicial authority but that such decisions could push more foreign correspondent banks to curtail their business relations with Lebanon’s financial system.

“The constant attack on banks and bankers is not the ideal way to get deposits back, which we assure are safe,” the association said in a statement.

Lebanon’s central bank governor Riad Salameh warned last month about the loss of correspondant banking relations in a letter to the public prosecutor.

But Bazy said more legal complaints would soon follow: “This is the first in a series of cases we plan to file, ultimately targeting around 70 banks.”



US Close to Several Trade Deals, Announcements to be Made in Next Days, Bessent Says

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the US Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass US President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, June 27, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the US Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass US President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, June 27, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo
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US Close to Several Trade Deals, Announcements to be Made in Next Days, Bessent Says

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the US Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass US President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, June 27, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to reporters at the US Capitol as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass US President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, June 27, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo

The United States is close to clinching several trade deals ahead of a July 9 deadline when higher tariffs kick in, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday, predicting several big announcements in coming days.

Bessent told CNN's "State of the Union" the Trump administration would also send out letters to 100 smaller countries with whom the US doesn't have much trade, notifying them that they would face higher tariff rates first set on April 2 and then suspended until July 9.

"President Trump's going to be sending letters to some of our trading partners saying that if you don't move things along, then on August 1 you will boomerang back to your April 2 tariff level. So I think we're going to see a lot of deals very quickly," Bessent said.

Bessent denied that August 1 was a new deadline for negotiations. "We are saying this is when it's happening. If you want to speed things up, have at it. If you want to go back to the old rate, that's your choice," he told CNN, Reuters reported.

The US Treasury chief said the Trump administration was focused on 18 important trading partners that account for 95% of the US trade deficit. But he said there had been "a lot of foot-dragging" among countries in getting closure on a trade deal.

He declined to name countries that were close to a trade agreement, adding, "because I don't want to let them off the hook."

Trump has repeatedly said India is close to signing a deal and expressed hope that an agreement could be reached with the European Union, while casting doubt on a deal with Japan.

Since taking office, the US president has set off a global trade war that has upended financial markets and sent policymakers scrambling to guard their economies, including through deals with the US and other countries.

Trump on April 2 announced a 10% base tariff rate and additional amounts for most countries, some ranging as high as 50%. The news roiled financial markets, prompting Trump to suspend all but the 10% base rate for 90 days to allow more time for negotiations to secure deals, but the process has proven more challenging than expected.

That period ends on July 9, although Trump early on Friday said the tariffs could be even higher - ranging up to 70% - with most set to go into effect August 1.

Bessent, asked about the 70% rate, referred back to the April 2 list, but that did not include such high rates.