Bank mergers in Lebanon. (c1996)

Abstract

This research project tackles "Merger", a topic which is nowadays widely spread in the media and throughout some nations. Merger is really wide topic because it can take place between companies, banks, financial institutions or it can be a combination of all. In addition, it can be between institutions in the same country or overseas. Therefore, the research focused on one specific area, the bank merger activity which is actually taking place in an emerging markets Lebanon. To conduct this study, both primary (interviews, newspapers, magazines and Central Bank publications), and secondary sources (books, dictionaries) were used. The project is an in-depth study of merger; mainly, its motives, types and directions. It analyses the banking sector in Lebanon, its development throughout three episodes pre-war, war and post war, as well as its unique characteristics and suggests the need for banks to merge in order to form strong units that are more effective and efficient and are able to face the challenges of the future. In order to support the need for merger a real life case study was discussed: the merger between Banque Beyrouth pour Ie Commerce and Security Bank. The motives behind merger were identified from the point of view of each bank, the merger process was described and at the financial statements of both banks were analyzed before and after merger in order to assess the outcome of this merger. However, one case study is not enough to generalize the conclusions derived and further studies needs to be conducted in order to assess merger and to analyze its effect on the future performance of banks.