By Hadi Fornaji.
Tunis, 28 July 2017:
Libyan shareholders at the Bank of Commerce and Development (BCD) have voted to terminate the relationship with the Qatar National Bank which owns 49 percent of the stock. At an extraordinary general meeting on Wednesday in Benghazi, where the bank is headquartered, shareholders voted to end the connection and buy out QNB’s stake.
It is not been announced how many shareholders turned up and took part in the vote although the bank has said that an attempt to hold the meeting on Tuesday failed because it was inquorate.
The move, which is being seen as purely political, has already come in for criticism from the Libyan banking community and is expected to be contested by QNB which
“It’s illegal”, said one senior Libyan banker. “This is a political decision, not a commercial decision. They [QNB] have shareholders’ rights,” he stated, adding that the move “sets a very bad precedent”. With Libyan law does not allowing foreign companies to have a majority stake in joint ventures in the country, many would not think twice about investing if they could be suddenly ousted by the majority Libyan shareholders.
