Syria bank chief points to insider in $10m theft



The chief of a Syrian bank that fell victim to a US$10 million (Dh36.7m) robbery believes it was an inside job.

Some $3.4m in cash, €4.75m (Dh23.6m) and 33m Syrian pounds (Dh1.7m) was stolen from the vault of the International Bank for Trade and Finance (IBTF) in Damascus on January 17, the bank said.

"The bank's management only discovered the robbery on the following Sunday," said Sultan Al Zobi, the chief executive.

He added that he believed a bank employee was involved in the raid but did not elaborate further.

The bank, whose major shareholder is Jordan's Housing Bank for Trade and Finance, said it had notified the authorities. An investigation was under way.

"It has also notified the insurance company to cover for potential losses," said the bank.

As Syria descends into chaos, businesses across the country are reporting a rapid rise in theft, armed robbery and looting.

It has compounded problems for Syria's 12 private banks, considered the crown jewels of president Bashar Al Assad's economic modernisation plan.

IBTF made profits of 332m Syrian pounds in the first three quarters of last year, compared with 743.8m pounds a year earlier.

"We hope this crisis will come to an end, sooner or later," said Mr Al Zobi. "We think the future in Syria and the business in Syria is promising. But for the banks, no doubt, the crisis has affected us."

It could take up to three years for the lender to recoup the losses, said a Damascus-based stockbroker who declined to be identified.

"The stolen amount at $10m, or 709m pounds, comprises about one fifth of the bank's capital," he said.

Omar Malhas, the chief executive at Housing Bank for Trade and Finance, declined to comment yesterday.

Private bank disclosures revealed this month that lenders have started to move their deposits to the capital from conflict areas, such as Homs and Aleppo, where fighting between Mr Al Assad's forces and the Free Syrian Army is rampant.

Banque Bemo Saudi Fransi on January 22 said 7.3m Syrian pounds went missing on its way from Deir Al Zor to Damascus.

In September, the bank said that it had incurred losses from fraud and forgery totalling 25m pounds. Syria International Islamic Bank, the largest shareholder of which is Qatar International Islamic Bank, said in the same month it had been targeted in a Homs robbery of 75.2m pounds.

Trading on the Damascus Securities Exchange has slowed to a trickle in recent months as violence escalated in the capital and other cities. But exchange officials say they remain committed to offering investors a place to trade their holdings.

The Damascus Securities Exchange General Index has lost more than half of its value since the uprising began. It traded at 1,523.14 points on March 15, 2011, the start of the uprising, and has since fallen to 784.37.

The IMF has not provided figures on the Syrian economy since the start of violence.

Kat Wightman's tips on how to create zones in large spaces

 

  • Area carpets or rugs are the easiest way to segregate spaces while also unifying them.
  • Lighting can help define areas. Try pendant lighting over dining tables, and side and floor lamps in living areas.
  • Keep the colour palette the same in a room, but combine different tones and textures in different zone. A common accent colour dotted throughout the space brings it together.
  • Don’t be afraid to use furniture to break up the space. For example, if you have a sofa placed in the middle of the room, a console unit behind it will give good punctuation.
  • Use a considered collection of prints and artworks that work together to form a cohesive journey.
COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
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Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

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Electoral College Victory

Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate. 

 

Popular Vote Tally

The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.

Living in...

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From Zero

Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5

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Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni

Director: Amith Krishnan

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Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
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Teaching your child to save

Pre-school (three - five years)

You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.

Early childhood (six - eight years)

Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.

Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)

Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.

Young teens (12 - 14 years)

Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.

Teenage (15 - 18 years)

Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.

Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)

Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.

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Ways to control drones

Countries have been coming up with ways to restrict and monitor the use of non-commercial drones to keep them from trespassing on controlled areas such as airports.

"Drones vary in size and some can be as big as a small city car - so imagine the impact of one hitting an airplane. It's a huge risk, especially when commercial airliners are not designed to make or take sudden evasive manoeuvres like drones can" says Saj Ahmed, chief analyst at London-based StrategicAero Research.

New measures have now been taken to monitor drone activity, Geo-fencing technology is one.

It's a method designed to prevent drones from drifting into banned areas. The technology uses GPS location signals to stop its machines flying close to airports and other restricted zones.

The European commission has recently announced a blueprint to make drone use in low-level airspace safe, secure and environmentally friendly. This process is called “U-Space” – it covers altitudes of up to 150 metres. It is also noteworthy that that UK Civil Aviation Authority recommends drones to be flown at no higher than 400ft. “U-Space” technology will be governed by a system similar to air traffic control management, which will be automated using tools like geo-fencing.

The UAE has drawn serious measures to ensure users register their devices under strict new laws. Authorities have urged that users must obtain approval in advance before flying the drones, non registered drone use in Dubai will result in a fine of up to twenty thousand dirhams under a new resolution approved by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai.

Mr Ahmad suggest that "Hefty fines running into hundreds of thousands of dollars need to compensate for the cost of airport disruption and flight diversions to lengthy jail spells, confiscation of travel rights and use of drones for a lengthy period" must be enforced in order to reduce airport intrusion.