Reuters: Syria carries out first SWIFT transaction since civil war

Syria has completed its first international bank transaction via the SWIFT system since the start of its 14-year civil war, marking a milestone in the country’s efforts to rejoin the global financial system, central bank governor Abdelkader Husriyeh said.

Husriyeh told Reuters in Damascus that a direct commercial transaction was carried out from a Syrian bank to an Italian bank on June 15, adding that transactions with US banks could begin within weeks, Caliber.Az reports.

"The door is now open to more such transactions," he said.

Syrian banks were largely cut off from the global system after President Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on anti-government protests in 2011 triggered sweeping sanctions by Western states, including restrictions on Syria’s central bank.

Assad was ousted as president in a lightning offensive by Islamist-led rebels last year, and Syria has since been working to rebuild international ties. In May, interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa met with Us President Donald Trump in Riyadh.

The United States then significantly eased sanctions on Syria, and some members of Congress are pushing for a full repeal. The European Union has also announced the end of its economic sanctions regime on the country.

Syria urgently needs to restore financial connections to secure funding for reconstruction and to revive an economy devastated by war, which the United Nations says has left nine in ten Syrians living in poverty.

Husriyeh chaired a high-level virtual meeting on June 18 bringing together Syrian banks, several US banks and US officials, including Washington’s Syria envoy Thomas Barrack.

The aim of the meeting was to accelerate the reconnection of Syria's banking system to the global financial system and Husriyeh extended a formal invitation to US banks to re-establish correspondent banking ties.

"We have two clear targets: have US banks set up representative offices in Syria and have transactions resume between Syrian and American banks. I think the latter can happen in a matter of weeks," Husriyeh told Reuters.

Among the US banks invited to the June 18 conference were JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Citibank, though it was not immediately clear which banks attended.

By Sabina Mammadli