Société Bancaire du Liban

Société Bancaire du Liban S.A.L. was a Lebanese banking institution established in 1958 and headquartered at Sassine Square in Achrafieh, Beirut. The bank was founded by the Bashi and Lawi families and was previously known as Banque Zilkha. Its history belongs to Lebanon's privately owned banking sector, where family-founded institutions operated commercial banking businesses serving customers in the country's principal financial centre. Publicly available reference material identifies the institution primarily through its corporate history rather than through a detailed record of products, branches, campaigns, or executive leadership. The bank's known identity is therefore centered on its name changes, Lebanese ownership origins, Beirut headquarters, and eventual corporate consolidation. As Société Bancaire du Liban S.A.L., it operated as a bank in Lebanon, but the available source does not provide enough detail to reliably describe specific account products, lending programs, branch numbers, market share, or financial performance. The institution ceased to exist as an independent bank on 31 December 2002, when it merged into First National Bank SAL. This transaction ended the Société Bancaire du Liban brand as a standalone banking entity. It should not be confused with similarly named banks or with Banque Zilkha as a separate unrelated institution; Banque Zilkha is identified in the reference material as the bank's former name. Because the available documentation is brief, additional research would be required to establish a fuller chronology of its ownership, management, operations, and merger terms.

Société Bancaire du Liban S.A.L. was founded in Lebanon in 1958 by the Bashi and Lawi families. The bank was formerly known as Banque Zilkha, indicating that its institutional history predates or includes a transition to the Société Bancaire du Liban name. Its headquarters were located at Sassine Square in Achrafieh, a prominent Beirut district and an established commercial and financial area. The available reference material characterizes Société Bancaire du Liban as a Lebanese bank but does not provide a detailed account of its branch network, balance sheet, customer segments, management, or specific banking products. It can therefore be described with confidence as a locally based commercial banking institution, while more granular claims about its operating model remain undocumented in the supplied sources. The bank's family-founded background was part of its historical identity, with the Bashi and Lawi families associated with its establishment. The decisive event in the bank's later history occurred on 31 December 2002, when Société Bancaire du Liban merged into First National Bank SAL. The merger brought the bank's independent corporate existence to an end and explains its current classification as a defunct brand rather than an active Lebanese bank. The reference does not state the transaction's financial terms, the consideration paid, the treatment of customers or branches, or the precise legal structure of the combination. Those details should not be inferred from the merger alone. Accordingly, the documented history of Société Bancaire du Liban is concise: establishment in 1958 by the Bashi and Lawi families, operation from Beirut under a name associated with the former Banque Zilkha identity, and merger into First National Bank SAL at the end of 2002. A fuller institutional history would require archival banking records, Lebanese regulatory filings, contemporary press coverage, or corporate records from First National Bank SAL.

• 2002

  Merger into First National Bank SAL

  [1]Société Bancaire du Libanen.wikipedia.org

  On 31 December 2002, the bank merged into First National Bank SAL and ended its existence as an independent institution.

• 1958

  Bank founded in Lebanon

  [1]Société Bancaire du Libanen.wikipedia.org

  Société Bancaire du Liban was established by the Bashi and Lawi families.

A Lebanese commercial banking institution with family-founded origins and a Beirut-based operating identity.

• Banking

  Commercial banking services

  The bank operated as a Lebanese banking institution. The supplied reference does not identify particular branded accounts, loan products, payment services, or investment offerings, so this description is limited to its documented role as a bank rather than to specific product claims.

• 2002

  Merger with First National Bank SALM&A

  Background

  Société Bancaire du Liban was an established Lebanese bank headquartered in Beirut. The available reference records a corporate merger but does not explain the strategic, regulatory, or financial background.

  Action taken

  The bank merged into First National Bank SAL on 31 December 2002.

  Aftermath

  The Société Bancaire du Liban entity and standalone brand became defunct following the merger.

  Source

1. 1Société Bancaire du Libanen.wikipedia.org