Eager to capitalize on the tech-savvy population,high education rate and entrepreneurial spirit, Banque du Liban’s (BDL) Circular 331, released in 2013, paved the way for the creation of dozens of startups in Lebanon, in addition to accelerators and incubators. Despite this support, events of the past few years have put a stop to the generous investments in startups. Circular 331 was meant to incentivize local banks to invest in the local tech scene to turn Lebanon into a start-up nation. The circular encouraged banks to allocate up to 3 percent of their capital in startups, incubators, accelerators and venture capital funds by a mechanism that would guarantee reimbursement in case of failure of the said venture up to 75 percent of direct startup equity investment or indirect support entities. Local banks would be authorized to obtain a seven-year loan from BDL with zero interest, in exchange for investing it in
