According to ABL statistics, the value of cleared checks fell by 27.58% on an annual basis to reach LBP 39,392 billion (distributed over 2,350,757 checks) in the first eight months of 2021, in comparison with LBP 54,392 billion (allocated over 3,979,043 checks) during that same period last year. Of the total value of cleared checks, 52.77% was denominated in foreign currency, versus 64.49% a year before. Concurrently, the value of returned checks fell by LBP 557 billion (52.70%) y-o-y to LBP 500 billion YTD August 2021, with the number of returned checks plunging by 79.40% to 18,759. Said anemic check clearing figures come in the light of the crippled economic activity and market’s preference for cash transactions amid the strict restrictions imposed by banks on cash withdrawals.

As a result, the number of returned checks expressed as a percentage of the total number of cleared checks dropped to 0.80% in the first eight months of 2021, down from 2.29% a year earlier. Concurrently, the value of returned checks calculated, as a percentage of the total cleared checks value fell to 1.27% by August this year, down from 1.94% during the first eight months of 2020.