The headquarters of the High Court of Justice in London. (Photo licensed under Creative Commons)
BEIRUT — Thirteen years after the introduction of an unconventional and emblematic mechanism for financing the digital economy through bank funds, Banque du Liban (BDL, central bank) could recover several tens of millions of dollars that it mobilized under the scheme following a British court ruling. On July 17, the London Commercial Court declared void the transfer of almost the entire investment portfolio of Lebanese venture-capital fund Cedar Mundi to entities linked to Kuwait’s Al Bahar group, finding that the transactions had been unauthorized and had been carried out at a price substantially below their value.In the 294-page judgment, reviewed by L’Orient-Le Jour, Justice Simon Bryan concluded that the fund’s director, Bassel Attieh, who was also linked to the Al Bahar group, had acted "behind the back" of Cedar Mundi’s...
BEIRUT — Thirteen years after the introduction of an unconventional and emblematic mechanism for financing the digital economy through bank funds, Banque du Liban (BDL, central bank) could recover several tens of millions of dollars that it mobilized under the scheme following a British court ruling. On July 17, the London Commercial Court declared void the transfer of almost the entire investment portfolio of Lebanese venture-capital fund Cedar Mundi to entities linked to Kuwait’s Al Bahar group, finding that the transactions had been unauthorized and had been carried out at a price substantially below their value.In the 294-page judgment, reviewed by L’Orient-Le Jour, Justice Simon Bryan concluded that the fund’s director, Bassel Attieh, who was also linked to the Al Bahar group, had acted "behind the back" of Cedar...