Salim G. Sfeir, Chairman and General Manager of Bank of Beirut, was featured on the cover of Banker Middle East magazine in November 2012. Mr Sfeir’s four page interview covered various economic topics related to the Lebanese banking sector, Bank of Beirut’s balance sheet’s growth and the Bank’s global expansion.
In his interview with Banker Middle East magazine, Mr Sfeir said in regards to the Bank’s notable growth in its domestic marketplace and abroad, “We are known to be a stable and forward looking institution […] Our initiatives and performance are positively reflected not only in deposit growth but also across key balance sheet indicators.”
Regarding BHB’s positioning and audience, Mr Sfeir explained, “Bank of Beirut is differentiated as far as corporate banking is concerned; our domestic market is the cornerstone of a global Lebanese community. […] We are in a very strong position to support corporate customers who are trading in Cyprus, UK, Australia, Oman, beyond Lebanon where we have a local presence.”
Mr Sfeir added, “Our product mix is evolving beyond deposits and loans. We are delivering a wide array of financial services ranging from trade finance, bancassurance, money transfers, and private banking.”
As for BHB’s significant presence overseas, Mr Sfeir stressed, “[…] In Australia we prioritised this stable, highly rated country to further hedge our consolidated balance sheet. We anticipate that Beirut Hellenic Bank in Australia will in a few years become even larger than our local network, due to the stability and prosperity of the Australian economy, tied in many ways to the large Greek and Lebanese diaspora.”
Beirut Hellenic Bank, formerly known as Laiki Bank Australia, has operated as a full service retail bank since 2001 with branches in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Since its inception, BHB has earned the reputation of working closely with its customers to understand and meet their individual needs. Offering customers highly competitive banking with personal service continues to be the BHB competitive advantage.