Banque Libano-Française S.A.L.

Banque libano-française S.A.L
Company typePublic
IndustryBanking
FoundedBeirut, Lebanon (1967 (1967))
HeadquartersLiberty Plaza building, Rome Street, ,
Area served
Number of employees
800+
ParentBanque Libano-Française
Websitewww.eblf.com

Banque Libano-Française (BLF, Arabic: البنك اللبناني الفرنسي) is a Lebanese bank holding number 10 on Banque du Liban List of Banks. It was established as a joint stock company in 1967. Its head office is located at the Beirut Liberty Plaza Building, Hamra District, Beirut, Lebanon.

As at end of December 2023, BLF operates in Lebanon through a network of 36 branches, 1 e-branch and 180 ATMs. Abroad, BLF Group is present in France and Cyprus (Banque SBA), in Switzerland (LF Finance Suisse), in the United Arab Emirates (a representative office in Abu Dhabi), and in Nigeria (a representative office in Lagos). It has 877 employees, including 799 persons employed in Lebanon.

It is also available through several digital channels, namely the My BLF mobile apps.

While it has historically been a commercial bank, the Bank has diversified its activities and currently provides banking services in five principal areas: commercial banking, investment banking, retail banking, private banking, treasury and capital markets and correspondent banking.

BLF is also a member of the Association of Banks in Lebanon.[1]

History

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  • Banque Libano-Française (BLF) was created in 1930 as a branch of the French bank, Compagnie Algérienne.
  • In 1967, BLF became a bank established under the Lebanese law, with 70% French shareholding.
  • In 1970, Banque Indosuez acquired a 5% direct interest in the Bank capital.
  • In 1973, Banque Indosuez increased its stake to 20% through a partial acquisition of the shares of Compagnie Française de Crédit et de Banque (former Compagnie Algérienne de Crédit et de Banque), which became known as Parthena Investment.
  • In 1992, Banque Indosuez increased its shareholding in Banque Libano-Française to 51%.
  • In 1999, BLF acquired 100% of Crédit Agricole Indosuez Liban (CAIL), a financial institution specialized in securities brokerage and portfolio management.
  • In 2004, Crédit Agricole Group decided to reduce its exposure in Lebanon, in anticipation of the implementation of Basle II. Therefore, Calyon (former Crédit Agricole Indosuez) reduced its participation in the Bank to 9%.
  • In 2006, BLF finalized the acquisition of 78.3% of Banque SBA shares, established in France (Paris) with a financial subsidiary in Geneva known as LF Finance (Switzerland) SA and a branch in Cyprus (Limassol).
  • In 2009, BLF obtained an official license from the UAE Central Bank to establish a Representative Office in Abu Dhabi.
  • In 2012, the Bank reinforced its operations in the MENA region by opening a Representative Office in Lagos, Nigeria and a branch in Baghdad, Iraq.
  • On September 1, 2014, Farid Raphaël, founder of Banque Libano-Française and its Chairman General Manager from 1979, passed away.[2]
  • On September 15, 2014, Walid Raphaël was elected by the Board of Directors as Chairman General Manager of the Bank.
  • In 2015, the Bank teamed up with Allianz SNA to launch 5 new non-life insurance plans to help protect its clients against various risks.
  • In January 2016, BLF launched the international architecture competition to build its new headquarters.
  • In July 2016, it announced Norwegian-American studio Snøhetta as the winner of the competition, selected by the International Jury.
  • In 2017, the Bank expanded its local network to 58 branches and more than 172 ATMs.
  • In 2018, BLF opened two branches in Kfarhbab and Tyre-Hoche, expanding its local network to 60 branches and more than 181 ATMs, and its first e-branch in Mar Mikhaël.
  • In 2019, BLF continued to implement the Bank's digital strategy with the opening of another e-branch in Badaro, the launch of "My LTBY" application for the youth, and the enhancement of "My BLF" features. In the last quarter of 2019, the Bank had to cope with the terrible socio-economic crisis that hit Lebanon.[citation needed]
  • In 2020, Banque Libano-Française continued to face the terrible socio-economic crisis in Lebanon and focuses its efforts on helping both clients and employees to overcome the situation.

Board of directors

[edit]
  • Walid Raphaël (Chairman)
  • Elie Nahas (Group Chairman)

Capital and financial figures

[edit]

BLF capital is LBP 265 billion.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]

[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34] [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [41] [42]

  1. ^ "Active Members, ABL - Association of Banks in Lebanon". Abl.org.lb. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  2. ^ "Farid Raphaël passes away More than 50 years of experience and leadership". Businessnews.com.lb. 2 September 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  3. ^ "Active Members, ABL - Association of Banks in Lebanon". Abl.org.lb. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  4. ^ "Farid Raphaël passes away More than 50 years of experience and leadership". Businessnews.com.lb. 2 September 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  5. ^ "Banque Libano-Française. Engagement pour les grandes causes". Magazine.com.lb. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  6. ^ "IFC in Lebanon". Ifc.org. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  7. ^ "SR Project - ISO 26000 MENA Project". Libnor.gov.lb. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  8. ^ "Letter regarding ten principles of Global Compact" (PDF). Unglobalcompact.org. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  9. ^ "GCNL – Global Compact Network Lebanon". Aub.edu.lb. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  10. ^ "Banque Libano-Française and Allianz SNA launch new insurance plans to make clients' life easier and protect them against the unexpected". abl.org.lb. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
  11. ^ "BLF, Allianz SNA plans". Retrieved 1 September 2015 – via PressReader.
  12. ^ "La BLF et Allianz SNA lancent de nouveaux plans d'assurances". lorientlejour.com. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  13. ^ "Launching of BLF - Allianz SNA launch new insurance plans". beiruting.com. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
  14. ^ "BLF selects Norwegian-American architecture studio Snøhetta to build its new headquarters following a rigorous international competition". abl.org.lb. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  15. ^ "snøhetta's vision for BLF tower in beirut wins competition". designboom.com. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  16. ^ "Snøhetta designs Beirut bank featuring chequerboard walls and rooftop gardens". dezeen.com. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  17. ^ "Snøhetta stacks up for BLF". worldarchitecturenews.com. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  18. ^ "Snøhetta Wins Competition to Build Its First Structure in Lebanon". architecturaldigest.com. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  19. ^ "Snøhetta to Design Banque Libano Francaise's New Headquarters". designcurial.com. Retrieved 9 August 2016.
  20. ^ "Snøhetta unveils their design for Beirut tower after triumphing in competition". archpaper.com. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  21. ^ "Snohetta Chosen to Design BLF Headquarters in Beirut". contractdesign.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  22. ^ "La Banque libano-française s'offre un nouveau siège à Mar Mikhaël". lecommercedulevant.com. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  23. ^ "First look at Snøhetta's winning "Magic Box" concept for Banque Libano Francaise". bustler.net. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  24. ^ "Le nouveau siège de la BLF: une approche écologique et des espaces publics ouverts à la communauté de Mar Mikhaël". agendaculturel.com. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  25. ^ "Banque Libano-Française Opens Iraqi Branch". iraq-businessnews.com. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
  26. ^ "Lebanese Bank opens office in Abu Dhabi". thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  27. ^ "Walid Raphaël élu PDG de la BLF". lecommercedulevant.com. 25 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  28. ^ "Walid Raphaël élu PDG de la Banque libano-française". lorientlejour.com. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  29. ^ "Walid Raphaël élu PDG de la BLF" (PDF). ccib.org.lb. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  30. ^ "Raya Raphaël Nahas, New Chair of the Promote Committee". lifelebanon.com. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  31. ^ "Banque Libano-Française Now Open in Kaslik". zawya.com. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  32. ^ "Farid Raphaël passes away". businessnews.com.lb. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
  33. ^ "Farid Raphael (1933-2014): A Unique Man". abl.org.lb. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
  34. ^ "BLF opens two new branches in Kfarhbab and Tyre Hoche". executive-bulletin.com. 22 February 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  35. ^ "Banque Libano-Française enhances its Presence in Keserwan and South Lebanon". www.zawya.com. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  36. ^ "Banque Libano-Française Taking CSR Commitment To A New Level". www.csrlebanon.com. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  37. ^ "Banque Libano-Francaise Sets An Example By Making The Most Of Corporate Social Responsibility". www.csrlebanon.com. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
  38. ^ "Le nouveau siège de la BLF : une approche écologique et des espaces publics ouverts à la communauté de Mar Mikhaël". www.agendaculturel.com. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  39. ^ "CSR is an integral part of BLF's values". www.aljoumhouria.com. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
  40. ^ "Banque Libano-Française: croissance maitrisée et liquidité élevée" (PDF). www.lorientlejour.com. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  41. ^ "Banque Libano-Française. Engagement pour les grandes causes". www.magazine.com.lb. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
  42. ^ "Banque Libano-Française joins the UNGC Local Network Steering Committee and Champions SDG 10: Reducing inequalities". 12 November 2018 [December 1, 2015]. Retrieved 9 November 2018.