Playtime is over. Nearly one year after calling for unregulated lenders to step out of the shadows, Banque du Liban (BDL), Lebanon’s central bank, imposed new restrictions and reporting requirements…
Matt Nash

Matt Nash
Matt was Executive's Economics & Policy Editor and Real Estate Editor from May 2014 to November 2017. He began reporting in Lebanon in April 2007, and his coverage focused on oil and gas, public policy and human rights.
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While everyone in Lebanon — from taxi drivers to elected officials — “knows” the country’s largest waste manager is as dirty as the trash it collects, when pressed for proof,…
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Incomplete as they are, the numbers look bad for Lebanon’s real estate sector in 2015. Construction permits are down. The number of transactions is down. Cement deliveries are down. Full-year…
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If a five-year plan to modernize Lebanon’s telecommunications infrastructure announced in July is being implemented, the Ministry of Telecommunications (MoT) isn’t talking about it. There’s no progress report on the…
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In January 2015, Lebanon put new visa rules in place for Syrians entering the country with an aim of stemming the flow of refugees crossing the border. In May, the…
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Lebanon has never gotten nation-wide waste management right. In 1971 the government hired a local consultant to help write a plan for treating and disposing of the country’s waste, according…
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Banque du Liban (BDL), Lebanon’s central bank, makes a curious claim on its website. Under “Monetary Overview” in the “About Us” section, the bank says that, beginning in 2013, it…
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Despite the malaise affecting Lebanon’s economy, there’s still some life in the real estate sector. Developers are building, and people are buying new apartments – at least in some market…
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The torrent of “free” money that Banque du Liban (BDL) Circular 331 was expected to release is still but a trickle. Approved by Lebanon’s central bank in August 2013, the…
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For all the talk of Minister of Agriculture Akram Chehayeb’s waste management plan including robust recycling initiatives, it actually lets municipalities decide how to treat and dispose of their waste…