Bilal Khalifeh tweeted today that a Judge has ruled that English courts have jurisdiction in relation to Lebanese banks. Khalife is a BLOM customer who has been unable to make use of the more than $1.4 million in his account, and has brought the case out of frustration of the bank’s refusal to return his life savings. This is unfortunately the case for many Lebanese residing in Lebanon and abroad, and Khalifeh’ small victory may pave the way for class action lawsuits against the top banks.
BLOM has responded to the news (check below thread) claiming that “the judge explained that under English law, the Bank would generally be entitled to pay the customer in Lebanon where he holds his account – which we have already offered to do”, but when asked as to how they offered to pay, they replied and I quote “Yes, we are ensuring that our customers’ needs are met by providing them access to their accounts in Lebanon through local transfers, cheques and payment cards”, which is total B.S given the inability to withdraw dollars or use our credit cards abroad.
I’m amazed and truly happy for this victory!! Bravo Bilal for suing the bank and congrats on your win. I wish someone can file class action lawsuits to help those who don’t have the ability to do so! @lebfinance @AzarsTweets https://t.co/0SpVqGPzdy
— Octavia Nasr أوكتاڤيا نصر 🕉 (@octavianasr) September 9, 2020
Let’s see where he can get with this lawsuit!
