# Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL)

> Source: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/sgbl-lebanon
> research date 2026-06-01 · extracted at 2026-10-03
> Publisher: Barcoder — encyclopedia of QR, barcode and payment-code standards

Specifications:
- [SGBL — official](https://www.sgbl.com.lb/)

## Overview

**Société Générale de Banque au Liban (SGBL)** is **Lebanese commercial bank** + **Sehnaoui family Lebanese founding family + Lebanese retail + institutional + foreign investors free float** + **one of Lebanon's largest commercial banks by assets** + **founded May 25 1953 in Beirut Lebanon as Société Générale Lebanese commercial banking subsidiary operating amid ongoing Lebanese banking + economic crisis since 2019** <sup>[1][1], [Lebanon report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/LB)</sup>.

## History

**May 25 1953 — Société Générale de Banque au Liban SGBL SAL founded in Beirut Lebanon as Société Générale French parent Lebanese commercial banking subsidiary** distinctive Lebanese-French banking heritage.

**2007 — Sehnaoui family Lebanese founding family acquires controlling stake in SGBL from Société Générale French parent + SGBL independence**.

**Mar 21 2018 — SGBL acquires GE Capital Lebanon consolidating into SGBL Lebanese commercial banking presence**.

**Oct 17 2019 — Lebanese banking + economic crisis triggers Lebanese commercial banking sectoral collapse with capital controls + Lebanese Pound LBP currency collapse + Banque du Liban BdL Ponzi scheme allegations**.

**2014 — SGBL Mobile banking app launch**.

## Ownership & operator

**Operating entity**: **Société Générale de Banque au Liban SGBL SAL** (Lebanese commercial bank).

**Major shareholders**: **Sehnaoui family (Lebanese founding family) + Lebanese retail + institutional + foreign investors free float**.

**Regulators**: **Banque du Liban BdL + national regulators across 3+ countries**.

## Technical integration

SGBL Mobile app (iOS + Android) + sgbl.com.lb online + SGBL branch network across Lebanon + Cyprus + Jordan international branches + SGBL Visa + Mastercard cards; EMVCo QRCPS QR payments + Lebanese Pound LBP + US Dollar USD domestic transfers (amid Lebanese banking + economic crisis since 2019).

## Implementations & partners

**Major Lebanese banking + payments competitors**: [Byblos Bank](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/byblos-bank) (Byblos Bank; BSE: BYB) + [Bank of Beirut](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/bank-of-beirut) (Bank of Beirut; BSE: BOB) + [Fransabank](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/fransabank) (Fransabank SAL) + [BankMed](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/bankmed) (BankMed) + [Banque Libano-Française (BLF)](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/banque-libano-francaise) (Banque Libano-Française BLF) + [Crédit Libanais](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/credit-libanais) (Crédit Libanais; EuroMTF: CRDL) + [BBAC (Bank of Beirut and the Arab Countries)](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/wallets/bbac-lebanon) (BBAC).

**Regulators**: Banque du Liban BdL + national regulators across 3+ countries.

## Status

**Crisis-active, Lebanese commercial bank + Sehnaoui family Lebanese founding family + Lebanese retail + institutional + foreign investors free float + one of Lebanon's largest commercial banks by assets + founded May 25 1953 in Beirut Lebanon as Société Générale Lebanese commercial banking subsidiary operating amid ongoing Lebanese banking + economic crisis since 2019** <sup>[1][1], [2][2]</sup>.

## Sources

[1]: https://www.sgbl.com.lb/ "SGBL — official"
[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soci%C3%A9t%C3%A9_G%C3%A9n%C3%A9rale_de_Banque_au_Liban "SGBL — Wikipedia"
[lb-cro]: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/LB

- [1] [SGBL — official][1]
- [2] [SGBL — Wikipedia][2]
- <sup>[Lebanon report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/LB)</sup> In-corpus: `reports/countries/LB-lebanon.md`

## Source

Biography extracted from [sgbl-lebanon.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/source/wallets/sgbl-lebanon). See `matrix.md` for standards-support matrix if present.