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Maysaa Sabrine Becomes First Woman to Lead Syria's Central Bank in 70-Year History Amid U.S. Sanctions

Dec 30, 2024, 02:43 PM

Syria's new rulers have appointed Maysaa Sabrine as the governor of the Syrian Central Bank, marking her as the first woman to lead the institution in its over 70-year history. Previously, Sabrine served as the first deputy governor of the bank. This appointment comes as part of significant changes following the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad by rebel forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. The bank has been working to liberalize the economy, previously heavily controlled by the state, by removing pre-approvals for imports and exports and easing foreign currency restrictions. Despite these efforts, the country and the bank remain under stringent U.S. sanctions. The central bank's vault holds nearly 26 tonnes of gold, unchanged since the start of the civil war in 2011, but foreign currency reserves have significantly dwindled from approximately $18 billion before the war to about $200 million.