By Osama Humaydan.
In the recent speech, Mr. Akkari, chairman of Jumhouria Bank, the largest bank in Libya, noted that the upcoming period will witness major developments by the Central Bank of Libya.
These developments are related to new products and services, and, most importantly, to housing loans, which will be given out to those clients who want to buy houses that are built and ready to be sold.
Furthermore, the chairman described new banking services and initiatives, such as student credit-debit cards. To date, Jumhouria Bank has already disbursed 150,000 cards to students all over Libya.
The development is a result of the memorandum of understanding signed between the Central Bank of Libya and the Ministry of Housing. The MOU deals with the finances available to customers who wish to purchase a finished housing unit, ready to be sold.
As specified in the memorandum, Akkari - acting as a representative - will ensure that the funds will be reinvested through Jumhouria Bank into the housing sector. This will be accomplished by allowing the customers to purchase the housing units through leasing schemes and to benefit from less complex financing structures and streamlined instalments.
Akkari also talked about bank's readiness to finance small and medium-scale projects (up to $500 million) in the event of a failure of the government's guarantees to provide grants for those projects.
Furthermore, the chairman described new banking services and initiatives, such as student credit-debit cards. To date, Jumhouria Bank has already disbursed 150,000 cards to students all over Libya. The universities that participate in this initiative should soon provide the bank with accurate data on the progress.
