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3. Syria to Start Replacing Currency from Jan 1: Central Bank Chief

Syria's central bank chief said Thursday that the country's currency would start to be replaced with a revamped version from January 1, as Damascus tries to relaunch its economy after emerging from the rule of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad last year.

Improving the standing of the Syrian pound is among the greatest challenges for Syria's new authorities, who had said they would remove two zeros and print new banknotes after Assad was removed.

His image and that of his father Hafez, who both ruled the country for decades, appear on some denominations of notes.

Central bank chief Abdul Qadir al-Hasriya said in a statement that "January 1, 2026, is the start date for the replacement process" for the currency.

Information on the implementation process is to be provided in a press conference scheduled for Sunday, he added.

"The new Syrian currency is a symbol of our financial sovereignty after the liberation," he said, and "a firm step towards stability and economic recovery".

Since the start of Syria's civil war in 2011, the pound has plunged from 50 to about 10,000-11,000 against the greenback, and Syrians are forced to carry huge wads of banknotes even for basic needs like grocery shopping.

Hasriya said the move to replace the currency comes at a "pivotal national juncture that reflects the beginning of a new economic and monetary era".

The United States this month announced its permanent lifting of the so-called Caesar sanctions, paving the way for the return of investments to Syria after years of economic isolation.

In August, Hasriya said his country would change its currency by removing two zeros, adding that the move "will not impact the currency's value".

He said the new banknotes would simply replace the old ones, avoiding further inflation in a country battered by soaring prices since the war, with the central bank intending to print six new denominations of notes.

AFP