In a move with profound economic and political implications, Syria has received an official invitation to participate for the first time in the annual SIBOS conference, organized by the SWIFT global network, the world’s most important platform for connecting financial and banking institutions. This year’s conference will be held in Frankfurt, Germany, from September 29 to October 2. We, at the Syrian Future Movement, believe that this invitation, although it comes within a technical banking context, reflects a qualitative shift in the international outlook on Syria’s financial future and opens a new window for repositioning the Syrian economy within the global system.
The Syrian Future Movement believes that Syria’s participation in the SIBOS conference, a gathering of the global financial elite, represents a partial break from the international financial isolation imposed by sanctions and retrenchment policies. It also represents a first sign of the possibility of reintegrating the Syrian banking sector into the global financial system, albeit at a technical or advisory level. It also represents a strategic opportunity to modernize the banking infrastructure, which suffers from calcification and obsolescence, by exploring the latest innovations in financial technology (FinTech) and banking governance.
The Syrian Future Movement views this participation as an opportunity to rethink the philosophy of the national economy by:
- Transitioning from a crisis economy to an opportunity economy by building a transparent financial system that can integrate with international markets.
- Redefining the concept of economic sovereignty, so that it does not mean isolation, but rather the ability to interact safely and independently with global systems.
- Adopt a humane, developmental economic model that places citizens at the heart of financial policies and restores trust between state and society. The Syrian Future Movement emphasizes the need to form an independent national committee comprising economic and banking experts to monitor the results of the participation in the Cebus conference and develop a roadmap for financial reform.
The Syrian Future Movement calls for launching a national economic dialogue that includes the private sector, civil society, and government agencies, with the aim of formulating a new economic vision for post-war Syria and working to improve the efficiency of Syrian banks through training, modernizing regulations, and adopting international standards for combating money laundering and terrorist financing.
The Syrian Future Movement recommends that all national forces work to lift all technical restrictions imposed on financial transfers, ensuring the facilitation of the flow of funds from expatriates and investors, enhancing monetary stability, and leveraging participation in SIBOS to establish technical partnerships with international financial institutions that contribute to knowledge transfer and the localization of banking technology.
The Syrian Future Movement believes that the economy is not just numbers and indicators, but rather an expression of a national will for life, dignity, and justice. Therefore, every step toward financial openness must be built on the foundations of transparency, independence, and social justice, ensuring that the Syrian economy serves the Syrian people, not the other way around.
