Lebanon appoints Karim Saeed as new Central Bank Governor

Shafaq News/ The Lebanese government appointed Karim Saeed as the governor of the central bank on Thursday following a cabinet vote.

Saeed secured 17 votes out of the 24 cabinet ministers.

Saeed replaces Wassim Mansouri, who had been serving as acting governor after Lebanon’s prolonged presidential vacuum prevented a permanent appointment for more than two years.

Who is Karim Saeed?

Kareem Saeed is a seasoned financial, banking, and legal expert with extensive experience spanning several decades. A member of the New York State Bar Association since 1989, he holds a law degree from Harvard Law School, where he specialized in banking law and wrote his thesis on the US Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which mandated the separation of commercial and investment banking services.

Saeed is closely associated with the "Harvard Plan" for addressing Lebanon’s economic crisis, which was funded by Growthgate Capital, a firm he co-founded and where he served as a managing partner.

His expertise covers regulatory compliance, financial structuring, and capital markets. Between 1996 and 2000, he worked extensively on equity and banking securities issuances in Lebanon, ensuring adherence to the regulations of the Central Bank of Lebanon and the Lebanese Capital Markets Authority.

Saeed also held the position of General Manager of Investment Banking at HSBC Middle East from May 2000 to May 2006.

In late 2006, he founded Growthgate Equity Partners in the UAE, an alternative asset management firm focused on private equity investments across the Middle East and North Africa.

Additionally, Saeed has worked closely with finance ministries and central banks in several Arab countries, including the UAE, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan.