LeBusiness — Lebanon Business News & Market Insights
Spinneys Opens in Amioun, Creating 150 Jobs in North Lebanon
Spinneys has launched a new branch in Amioun, the main town of Lebanon's Koura district. The three-floor store covers more than 4,400 square meters and added 150 jobs for the local community. Company chairman Hassan Ezzeddine framed the opening as part of a push to invest in North Lebanon.
Storyland Wins ESA-HEC Entrepreneur Prize 2026
Lebanese startup Storyland took the top prize at the seventh ESA-HEC Entrepreneur competition in Beirut. Its app uses several AI models to build personalized illustrated stories and can clone a family member's voice to narrate them. The win comes with six months of funded incubation at Station F in Paris.
L'Auberge de Tyr Reopens After Months of War Damage in South Lebanon
L'Auberge de Tyr has reopened following a war-related closure in South Lebanon. The property, which grew from an equestrian club into a 20-room hillside retreat, is welcoming guests again as businesses across the region resume operations.
Payment Cards in Lebanon Slip to 1.70 Million as Prepaid Use Fades
BDL statistics show the number of payment cards in Lebanon fell 0.99% in the first four months of 2026 to 1,697,090. Prepaid cards drove the decline, while debit and charge cards grew and the POS network expanded by nearly 18%.
Latest News
Lebanon Ties Driving School Fees to a Mandatory Skill Test
New Ministry of Interior rules cap what schools can charge and link the total bill to how much training you need.
Lebanon's Ministry of Interior has issued Decision No. 825, setting a unified fee structure for driving schools nationwide. The bill is now tied to a mandatory skill evaluation that sorts students into five levels, with total package caps ranging from 11.25 million to nearly 23 million pounds. The decision also puts limits on paperwork and transport fees that schools previously priced on their own.
Majid Al Futtaim Opens First Premium Carrefour Market in Dubai
The 2,200 square metre store in Jumeirah Park is the prototype for Carrefour's next premium format.
Majid Al Futtaim has opened the first premium Carrefour Market in the UAE at Jumeirah Park Centre in Dubai. The store gives 38% of its floor space to fresh and ready-made food and will serve as the model for more premium outlets in 2026.
Global Study Hub Was Born from Its Founder's Own Struggle to Study Abroad
Sami Georges Faddoul built the Paris-based service after navigating Campus France, visas, and paperwork himself.
Global Study Hub is a Paris-based service founded in 2024 that guides international students through university applications, Campus France, visas, housing, and student jobs. Founder Sami Georges Faddoul started it after his own difficult move to France in 2021.
How a Lebanese Entrepreneur and Chef Turned a Covid Setback Into ChefsTable
The Dubai private dining and events company now has offices in four countries, with three more markets planned.
Albert Valentine launched ChefsTable in 2021 after losing his restaurants during the pandemic. The Dubai-based company stages private dinners, tasting menus, and luxury events, and has grown to offices in Dubai, Miami, Monaco, and Toronto. New York, Singapore, and Italy are next on its expansion list.
Lebanese Bank Capital Up 23% in a Year While Deposits Keep Shrinking
BDL data show commercial bank equity at LBP 446.67 trillion in May 2026 as deposits and lending both contract.
Banque du Liban statistics for May 2026 show the capital accounts of Lebanon's commercial banks rising 1.39% since December to LBP 446.67 trillion. Customer deposits fell to LBP 7,750.19 trillion and the deposit dollarization rate reached 98.76%.
UAE Investors 'More Than Welcome' in Lebanon, Says Ambassador Mneimneh
Lebanon's envoy to the UAE points to ports, airports and digital governance as the first openings for Emirati capital.
Lebanon is stepping up efforts to attract Emirati investment, with its ambassador to the UAE confirming talks are under way in sectors like ports, airports and digital governance. The push follows the lifting of the UAE travel ban and the signing of a trilateral framework between Lebanon, the US and Israel.
OSN Bids $3.39 Per Share to Take Anghami Private
The Dubai group wants the roughly 33 percent of the Lebanese-founded streamer it does not own, ending its Nasdaq run.
OSN Streaming has made a preliminary, non-binding offer to buy all Anghami shares it does not already own for $3.39 each in cash. A special committee of three independent directors will review the proposal, which would delist the music streamer from Nasdaq and place it fully under OSN.
B018 Returns: Beirut's Bunker Club Reopens With a $200,000 Sound Rebuild
The Karantina venue is back after two years, with founder's son Omran Gebran leading a back-to-basics relaunch.
Beirut's underground club B018 is reopening in July 2026 after shutting down in 2024 over a dispute tied to its site. The relaunch brings the venue back to its original 1998 concept, with Omran Gebran running the music and a fully analogue d&b audiotechnik system installed for around $200,000.
Tech Salaries in Lebanon: What Engineers Actually Earn in 2026
A level-by-level guide to tech pay in fresh dollars, from junior developers in Beirut to remote seniors.
A detailed guide to technology salaries in Lebanon in 2026, covering junior, mid-level, and senior engineering pay, specialist premiums in data and cybersecurity, remote work rates, freelance pricing, and why most global salary websites get Lebanon wrong.
Tripoli Port Freight Drops 37.89% in Q1 2026 as Revenues Slide
Total shipped goods fell to 377 thousand tons in the first quarter, down from 607 thousand tons a year earlier.
Freight activity at the Port of Tripoli fell sharply in the first quarter of 2026, with total shipped goods down 37.89% year-on-year. Vessel traffic, car imports, and port revenues all recorded steep declines over the same period.
Karen Wazen Beach Club Opens in Lebanon: Entry From $30, Memberships at $600
The Dubai pop-up concept lands on the Aishti rooftop in Jal El Dib with day passes, memberships, and sunset sessions.
Karen Wazen opened her beach club in Jal El Dib on July 1, bringing her Dubai pop-up concept to Lebanon. Here are the entrance fees, membership perks, and opening hours for the summer season.
Lebanon Real Estate Deals Reach $1.96B in First Five Months of 2026
May transactions fell 43.5% from a year earlier as the renewed Israel-Hezbollah conflict weighed on demand.
Lebanon recorded 18,631 real estate transactions worth $1,958.8M in the first five months of 2026, according to the Land Registry and Cadastre. May activity dropped 43.5% year on year but rose 4.64% from April, with Metn, Baabda, and Keserwan leading by value.
Featured Posts
Latest News
Banque de l'Habitat's Solar Loan: How to Apply in Lebanon in 2026
The Housing Bank finances rooftop solar in fresh dollars, with strict income limits and three official sign-offs.
Banque de l'Habitat runs the main active financing route for rooftop solar in Lebanon, lending in fresh dollars over five years. This guide covers the 2026 rate, the income and debt limits, the LCEC and ministry approvals required, and the exact steps to apply online.
Thinkers Opens New Coffee and Work Space in Antelias
The Lebanese coffee chain opened a Demco Towers branch running daily from 7 AM to midnight, its fourth location.
Thinkers Coffee Shop has opened a new branch at Demco Towers in Antelias, running from 7 AM to midnight every day. The launch added a fourth location to the Lebanese chain and included a coffee party with events brand Brews & Beats.
Patchi Opens Le Resto in Dbayeh With Chef Youssef Akiki
The Lebanese chocolate house moves into all-day casual dining through a partnership with a well-known local chef.
Patchi has opened Le Resto, an all-day casual dining venue in Dbayeh, in partnership with chef Youssef Akiki. The restaurant serves Mediterranean food from breakfast to dinner and marks a new step in the brand's hospitality push in Lebanon.
Inside altero, the New Achrafieh Restaurant Built Over Three Years
Chef Fadi Anid and partner Claude Sader open a multi-room Italian dining concept in the heart of Beirut.
altero is a contemporary Italian restaurant that opened in Achrafieh, Beirut, in February 2026. Founded by Executive Chef Fadi Anid and his partner Claude Sader, it brings together a dining room, a wine bar, a chef's table, a terrace, and a lounge under one roof. The concept took nearly three years of planning before its doors opened.
Lebanese Co-Owner's Philadelphia Restaurant Wins Top James Beard Award
Kalaya, the Fishtown Thai restaurant backed by Beirut-raised developer Roland Kassis, was named the best restaurant in the United States.
Kalaya, a Southern Thai restaurant in Philadelphia, has won the 2026 James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant, the highest national honor in American dining. The restaurant is co-owned by Roland Kassis, a Lebanese entrepreneur who left Beirut at 14 and went on to reshape the city's Fishtown district through food, real estate and culture.
Prices Set to Rise 2 to 3 Percent on New Fee
Because the new fee reaches raw materials, importers expect it to spread through the entire market.
Lebanon has introduced Decree 3214, a fee tied to the waste that goods generate during production or use. Because it captures raw materials feeding local factories, importers say the cost will surface in prices across most product categories, with fuel singled out as the heaviest burden.
Best ERP For Lebanese Manufacturers and Retailers
Dual-currency books, NSSF payroll, and the new e-filing rules decide the shortlist before price ever does.
A practical guide to choosing ERP software in Lebanon, built around the local problems that break most systems: USD and LBP on the same ledger, NSSF and VAT compliance, the Ministry of Finance electronic filing mandate, and patchy power. It compares SAP Business One, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, Odoo, and Zoho on real price bands and names verified local implementation partners.
MUUN: Chef Tarek Alameddine Opens a Japanese Table in Saifi
The chef behind Beihouse and BUCO brings hand rolls, nigiri, and ramen to a calm new room in Beirut.
MUUN is a new Japanese restaurant in Beirut's Saifi district from chef Tarek Alameddine, who also runs Beihouse and BUCO. The menu runs from made-to-order hand rolls and premium nigiri to crudos, curries, and ramen, served in a room built around an open kitchen and a deliberately quiet design.
