Lebanon’s Pound Sees 90% Devaluation With New Official Exchange Rate

Lebanon has shifted its official exchange rate, devaluating the currency by almost 90%. The exchange rate, which applies to the country’s banks, was set on Wednesday at 15,000 pounds against the dollar, the French news agency AFP first reported. Lebanon is currently in one of the worst economic crisis globally in centuries, according to the World Bank. The Lebanese pound has been officially pegged at 1,507 to the dollar since 1997. After beginning to devalue in late 2019, the Lebanese pound hit record lows of more than 60,000 in January. The pound was trading at about 58,000 to the dollar on Tuesday, the day before the new exchange rate took effect. The new exchange was first proposed to take effect in November, though it was not implemented. The establishment of a new official exchange rate is part of Lebanon’s work toward receiving a bail-out from the International Monetary Fund.