Go West or East young bank

Banque Audi’s recent move into Jordan is much more than just a reflection of Lebanese pioneering tradition. Lebanon’s dire economic situation has affected the quality of loan portfolios and domestic placement opportunities and has forced many of Lebanon’s leading banks to look beyond their borders to diversify assets, improve the quality of profits and revenues, and rely less on a stagnant local economy. Indeed, in the last ten years, banks such as Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL), Byblos Bank, Banque Audi, BLOM, and Lebanese Canadian Bank have either purchased banks in neighboring countries, set up joint ventures with local banking groups in these countries, or established branches abroad. SGBL was the first to show interest in Jordan and purchased a small Jordanian bank in the late 1990s (Middle East Investment Bank), while Banque Audi recently followed suit by obtaining a license to open branches there. Audi has already