The Libyan Foreign Bank (LFB) announced that the French Court of Appeal has invalidated the seizures made by Tunisian-based corporation, Siba Plast on the bank’s assets in France. These amount to €280 million euros.
The LFB described the ruling as “a significant step towards solidifying the LFB strategy of global asset protection.”
“These two rulings are the culmination of continuous efforts to improve the LFB’s operations through a series of strategic transformation projects launched in 2021. These include projects that are intended to protect the bank’s assets and investments,” it said in a statement on Tuesday.
The French decision reinforced the independence of the financial and legal standing of LFB, referencing the bank’s by-laws, and legal standing in Libya. In addition to international treaties, protecting independent sovereign financial institutions.
The LFB expressed its “appreciation to all those who contributed to these significant court rulings, the result of efforts led by the LFB’s legal team, employees, and partners.”
“We affirm our commitment to exerting maximum efforts to improve the bank’s performance, and solidifying its assets and investments by protecting them through enhanced corporate governance and implementation of global best practices,” it concluded.
The Libya Investment Authority (LIA) said in April 2022 that it has made successful appeals against Siba Plast.
The case dates back to 2014, when a ruling was issued by the arbitration chamber in Tunisia, to seize the funds. The LIA was notified, and motioned the verdict before the Court of First Instance in Paris.
“A Parisian court reserved the case for judgment to then rule to cancel the seizures,” the LIA said in a statement.
A legal team was tasked with preventing European countries, such as Belgium, from seizing frozen funds, estimated to be in the billions of dollars. Numerous lawsuits have been filed by foreign countries, hoping to receive compensation for their stalled projects in Libya.