The Truth About Exorbitant Fees and Commissions in Lebanese Banks

The scene of banks polishing their image in front of the new account holders, and the corresponding continuation of “ragging” the old account holders, is a contradictory scene that consolidates the theory that banks deliberately deceive their customers. Deductions, commissions, and the continuous policy of “snagging” by banks complete the theft of depositors, who are melting 85 percent of the value of their deposits, regardless of their size.

Random deductions

The value of deductions varies from current, savings, and even new accounts, and suggests randomness due to its difference from one bank to another, and its rise from one month to another in the same bank. The value of commissions on fresh dollar accounts ranges between $10 and $20, depending on the banks. And if it is added to the various and unjustified fees in many of them, it amounts to 40 and 50 dollars per month. These deductions are not limited to savings accounts, but also to current accounts and those that receive modest transfers per month.

Blom Bank almost ranks first among the banks that receive complaints about its dealings. A customer complains that the bank deducted 150,000 pounds from his account in return for paying a periodic bill of only 300,000 pounds. The bank charges a commission of 50 percent of the value of the bill itself.

The commission itself is 150,000 pounds, which it deducts from employees whose national salaries do not exceed 7 million pounds, in addition to other fees and commissions under vague names, exceeding hundreds of thousands of pounds. The bank may find it easy to deduct the equivalent of $1.5 or $2 from an employee, but when the employee’s total salary approaches only $70, the two dollars become of double value.

The bank raises fees that fall under various useless names, such as account statement expenses, account expenses, commission for the highest balance, and others.. The total of those commissions exceeds 450,000 pounds per month. This is in addition to fees in fresh dollars, and some in bank dollars, i.e. dollars, which are deducted from both old and new accounts, and their value exceeds 10 dollars.

Banks are racing to exploit their customers

Other banks are no better than Blom Bank. For example, Byblos Bank deducts 9 dollars from dollar accounts, and periodically increases by one dollar, as it is difficult for the customer to calculate it in addition to the various commissions and fees imposed on the accounts.

The total fees, commissions, and deductions from the account of a Byblos Bank customer are 200,000 pounds per month, while the account balance does not exceed 3 million pounds. As for withdrawals from the ATM, it has other accounts and deductions, and it amounts to $ 7 on dollar withdrawals of $ 1,000.

Banks’ crimes, represented by large deductions from accounts, are accompanied by their continued detention of savings and deposits, even salaries transferred monthly, and setting very low ceilings for withdrawals. A customer whose deposit exceeds $500,000 in Cedrus bank cannot withdraw more than 5 million pounds per month only. Some Cedrus bank clients have resorted to the Banque du Liban to file complaints with the Banking Control Commission, to no avail.

Some banks adopt a policy of enticing the customer to fine sums of money unjustly, by closing his account without informing him of the commissions incurred on him, except after doubling them, or exposing his account and accumulating fines and monthly withdrawals without his knowledge. Bank med clients have experiences with these cases, and some of them were charged by the bank with about $60 in commissions instead of closing a banking account without informing him of that. The closing fee is $12, in addition to commissions and other fines, which the customer is surprised by after months of stopping dealing with the account.