Syrian Finance Minister Mohammad Barniyeh announced the formation of a specialized advisory committee to study the reality of non-performing loans at Syrian state-owned banks; aiming to propose legal and practical solutions that ensure the recovery of public funds and alleviate the burdens on borrowers through incentive programs and encouraging exemptions.

Barniyeh explained that this step comes as part of the Syrian state’s efforts to stimulate the national economy, noting that the committee includes a specialized judge, banking experts, businessmen, and legal professionals, in addition to representatives from the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Syria, and the Central Financial Control Bureau.

The committee will work on fairly settling the debts of defaulters, enabling them to resume their economic activities, lifting seizures on them and their families, alongside recovering a large portion of the banks’ resources, improving solvency and financial stability indicators, contributing to solving liquidity problems, cleaning up loan portfolios, and reducing the risks of non-performing debts.

Barniyeh said: “This step complements a comprehensive reform plan for the financial and banking sectors, which was announced last June, including reviewing the performance of state banks and updating their services, in cooperation with the Central Bank of Syria and the relevant regulatory bodies.”

State-owned banks in Syria face accumulating challenges due to the worsening of non-performing loans, negatively affecting financial stability and liquidity.