According to ABL statistics, the value of cleared checks fell by 29.58% on an annual basis to reach LBP 43,182 billion (distributed over 2,555,352 checks) in the first nine months of 2021, in comparison with LBP 61,319 billion (allocated over 4,490,413 checks) during that same period last year. Of the total value of cleared checks, 51.90% was denominated in foreign currency, versus 64.46% a year before. Concurrently, the value of returned checks fell by LBP 540 billion (46.75%) y-o-y to LBP 615 billion YTD September 2021, with the number of returned checks plunging by 78.53% to 20,709. 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 0.81% in the first nine months of 2021, down from 2.15% a year earlier. Concurrently, the value of returned checks calculated, as a percentage of the total cleared checks value fell to 1.42% by September this year, down from 1.88% during the first nine months of 2020.