Former Libyan Ambassador to Syria, Mohamed Shaban, commented on the Central Bank of Libya’s recent statements regarding responsibility for the liquidity shortage, addressing Governor Naji Issa in a Facebook post where he asserted that “banking automation and digital transactions are not nuclear physics.”
Operational Comparison and a Call to Accelerate Digitization
Shaban pointed to the experience of “Al Ahly Bank of Egypt,” which serves “around 21 million customers, not including companies,” noting that “people deposit, withdraw, and transfer money from their phones, through ATMs, and even at gas stations,” in a reference to the widespread acceptance and ease of use of digital payments.
Comprehensive Mandate for Electronic Payments and Prohibition of Large Cash Transactions
He called for mandating all businesses to provide electronic payment methods, stating that “any shop without electronic payment and services should be closed until they are provided,” and that “any public entity that charges fees for transactions must deal digitally; cash is forbidden.” He also demanded a ban on registering or licensing any property, vehicle, or deal exceeding 100,000 dinars “without a bank transfer between the seller and the buyer.”
Shaban stressed the “activation of the Economic Crimes Prosecution and combating money smuggling,” criticizing what he described as the “prolonging of the liquidity issue since the beginning of the year” and “slogans without practical solutions.”
He proposed opening foreign currency accounts for citizens and “making direct bank transfers available” to stabilize the dollar exchange rate, calling for an end to “petty games” in managing the foreign currency file.