LeBusiness — Lebanon Business News & Market Insights
From seven-day shifts to $1 billion in sales: Sam Kamra's next move
Toronto entrepreneur Sam Kamra built Listing.ca, an MLS search platform showing every Ontario price in Canadian dollars and Bitcoin, after a childhood of long shifts. With over $1 billion in career sales behind him, he is preparing to launch a vacation booking platform.
A Beirut-Born Art Historian Now Runs Louvre Abu Dhabi
Lebanese art historian Souraya Noujaim has been appointed director of Louvre Abu Dhabi. She previously led the museum's curatorial and collections work and most recently headed the Islamic Arts department at the Louvre in Paris.
$3.7 billion in eight months: what Lebanon's property figures don't tell you
Lebanon registered 34,083 property sales worth about $3.70 billion between January and August 2026. National figures still cannot tell an owner what a single building is worth, and for Lebanese families living abroad that gap is the whole problem. Beirut advisory firm Cedar Keys Estates sets out what the data shows, what it leaves out, and four questions to ask before trusting anyone with a property you cannot visit.
12 STARTUPS PITCHED. ONLY ONE WALKED AWAY WITH $3,000
The Berytech x USJ EC² Incubation program ended with a pitching ceremony and awards for 12 early-stage startups. Dent Secure received the Maroun N. Chammas Award and $3,000, while Brain Rush and Safe Dose completed the top three.
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Cigno turns a family joke into Lebanese-made kidswear
Michele Karam turned a family joke with her three brothers into Italian-inspired kidswear for ages 2 to 8.
Cigno is a Beirut kidswear brand making Italian-inspired clothes for children aged 2 to 8, all produced in Lebanon. Founder Michele Karam, a graphic designer, landed a first order before the official launch and is now preparing a Winter Collection.
CLUB SODΛ ACTIVE, the Beirut label taking tennis wear beyond the court
Founder Karen Atallah's debut collection covers tennis, padel, Pilates and yoga, in pieces made to last the whole day.
Founded in Beirut in 2026, CLUB SODΛ ACTIVE has launched its debut collection and online store. Founder Karen Atallah designs women's tennis, padel, Pilates and yoga pieces that carry through a full day, with plans to reach women regionally and internationally.
88,862 Fresh Dollar Checks Worth $1.12B Have Now Cleared in Lebanon
Checks drawn on fresh accounts keep growing, while legacy clearing volumes fell 37% year on year by August 2026.
Association of Lebanese Banks data shows 121,431 checks have been issued from fresh accounts under BDL Circular 165, including 88,862 in US dollars worth $1.12 billion. Legacy cleared checks fell 37.17% year on year to 46,210, and returned checks dropped 41.90%.
Swiss Butter Opens in Paris, Its 21st Restaurant Worldwide
The Beirut steakhouse, founded in 2017, opens its first French branch in the 9th arrondissement.
Swiss Butter has opened at 13 Rue du Faubourg Montmartre, its first restaurant in France. The Beirut concept, launched in 2017, already operates across Lebanon, the Arab region, London and Madrid, serving steak and fries with its signature butter sauce.
Beirut Gets a UAE Electronic Visa Center in October
The UAE Foreign Ministry says applicants in Lebanon will soon complete visa procedures without leaving the country.
The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced plans to open an Electronic Visa Center in Beirut in October 2026. The center will let applicants in Lebanon complete UAE visa procedures locally, though its location, fees, hours and services have not yet been announced.
Amwali Financials Builds Outsourced Finance Departments for Middle East SMEs
Amwali Financials replaces the single accountant with a team of specialists, cloud systems and live reporting.
Amwali Financials gives small and medium-sized businesses across the Middle East a team of finance specialists, cloud accounting systems and live reporting. Its services run from bookkeeping and cash-flow tracking to budgeting, forecasting and advisory.
Six Lebanese Changemakers Join L'Oréal Paris 'Women of Worth' Class of 2026
The fourth Lebanese edition honoured women in medicine, fashion, food, tech, leadership and social impact.
L'Oréal Paris Lebanon named six women as its 2026 Women of Worth honourees at a ceremony held at the French Ambassador's Résidence des Pins in Beirut. The list spans medicine, fashion, culinary arts, technology, leadership and social impact.
A $100 Billion Economy Is Within Lebanon's Reach
Amer Bisat says GDP of $30 to $33 billion could triple, but only with political, security, and economic reform.
Lebanon's Minister of Economy and Trade Amer Bisat told an LAU seminar that the economy could reach about $100 billion with the right use of its resources. He linked growth to state sovereignty, sector reforms, and better use of human capital and the diaspora.
Days Turns One With 35,000 Coffee Sleeves Sold and 150+ UAE Stores
The Beirut roaster ships coffee the month it is roasted, and marks its first year on International Coffee Day.
Beirut coffee brand Days completes its first year on October 1, the same date as International Coffee Day. Founded in 2025 by Youssef Rahal and Rawad, it roasts in small batches and ships within the month, and has become the first Lebanese coffee brand to receive a Great Taste Star.
Viral Vision: The Beirut Holding Company That Started With $500
Souheil Sabban launched Mr. Football at 18. It became the first brand in a growing e-commerce portfolio.
Souheil Sabban founded Viral Vision in 2023 after watching his family lose its savings in Lebanon's banking crisis. The company now runs several e-commerce brands, including Mr. Football, Rule The Pitch, and REYZ Eyewear, from shared systems in Beirut.
Lebanon Salaries vs Dubai, London and New York: 23 Roles Priced in 2026
OEG Outsourcing prices the same job in four markets and marks every Lebanese figure the country does not publish.
A sponsored benchmark by OEG Outsourcing compares monthly gross pay for 23 roles in Lebanon, the Gulf, the UK and Europe, and the US and Canada. It argues the gap reflects where the employer sits rather than skill, and flags eight Lebanese roles with no published wage data.
Superpowders: From 500 Bags of Mushroom Coffee to 1,000 Stores
Two founders put in $6,000 each and built a wellness brand now heading to Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
Beirut-based Superpowders began with a first run of 500 mushroom coffee bags and $6,000 from each co-founder. Its zero-sugar electrolytes and mushroom coffee now reach more than 100,000 customers in Lebanon, with the UAE live and two new markets planned by the end of October.
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Organic Traffic in Lebanon: How to Win on Google and in AI Answers
Fewer searches end in a click. Here is how Lebanese businesses can still get found through SEO and AI optimization.
A practical guide for Lebanese businesses on growing organic website traffic as Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT change how people search. It covers technical SEO basics, local search, writing content that AI tools cite, and building brand mentions, with a 30-day action plan.
Panic Zones, a survival card game by four Lebanese founders, passes 5,000 units
Four Lebanese co-founders in Dubai spent two years building a party game meant to travel far beyond MENA.
Panic Zones: Arctic Edition launched in December 2025 after about two years of development and 600+ playtests. It has since sold over 5,000 units across five MENA markets and is heading to SPIEL Essen, with the UK and US next.
$60 Million in Lebanon's 2027 Draft Budget to Restart Housing Loans
Dollar loans of up to $100,000 at 3.5% are proposed for first-time owners, pending Parliament's approval.
Lebanon's draft 2027 budget allocates $60 million to the Public Corporation for Housing to resume home loans. The proposed loans would reach $100,000 in US dollars at a 3.5% rate, limited to applicants who do not already own a home.
Kyma: Two Brothers Turn a 1960s Family House Into a Coastal Restaurant
After living abroad in 2024, the brothers returned in 2025 to build a restaurant around the daily catch.
Kyma is a coastal restaurant in Lebanon run by two brothers who moved back home in 2025. Set in a family house from the 1960s, it builds its menu around the daily fresh catch, so the food changes from one visit to the next.
SheEmpower Opens in Beirut With First Cohort of Women Entrepreneurs
The EU-funded program, run locally by the Beirut Chamber of Commerce, begins with business and digital skills training.
The Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Beirut and Mount Lebanon has welcomed the first Lebanese cohort of SheEmpower, a €2.7 million Interreg NEXT MED project. Participants, many from agribusiness, will receive training, mentoring and access to regional markets.
No Suitcase Needed: Wakilni Teams Up With DHL Express Lebanon
The Lebanese delivery company now lets customers send personal items, gifts, and orders abroad through DHL's network.
Lebanese delivery company Wakilni has partnered with DHL Express Lebanon to offer international shipping for personal items, gifts, and online orders. The article covers how the service works, published delivery zones and indicative rates, and the restrictions that apply.
LEVEL11 Advisory's Ghina Itani: ten out of ten is only the baseline
Ghina Itani founded the Dubai advisory in 2025 after two decades of watching marketing drift from the business.
Ghina Itani spent twenty years in regional boardrooms before founding LEVEL11 Advisory in Dubai in 2025. The firm works with businesses across the GCC and MENA on brand, communications and growth as one conversation rather than three.
BY Venture Partners-Backed AIC Expands naviflow.ai
AIC is building an AI-powered shipment operations platform for importers, exporters, traders and distributors.
AIC DWC-LLC is putting more of its international trade technology work behind naviflow.ai, a platform that pulls shipment operations into a single workspace. The product is aimed at importers, exporters, traders and distributors in sectors such as FMCG, pharmaceuticals and commodities.
