مصرف سورية المركزي

Agricultural Cooperative Bank in Syria is a public institution of an economic nature with juridical personality and financial and administrative independence. It is linked to the Minister of Finance, and its headquarter is in the city of Damascus. Since its establishment on 15 August 1888, the Agricultural Cooperative Bank has been specialized in agricultural credit, and played an important and vital role in the agricultural development process in Syria throughout its long history. It has also contributed significantly and effectively to the development of the Syrian countryside. However, the economic and financial developments at the local, regional or international levels compelled the bank to reconsider its strategy and mechanism of action. This led the bank to radically amend its law in accordance with the Legislative Decree No. 30 of 2005. According to this amendment, the bank became a comprehensive rural development bank which provides all banking services and facilities of various types and forms to all clients. However, the bank mainly targeted, in its transactions, the rural population, who constitute the largest number, and the most widespread and productive segment in the Syrian society. The widespread of the bank over all rural areas helps performing this role, and makes it qualified to be a bank for all rural people. It is worth noting that the transformation process from a bank specialized in agricultural credit into a comprehensive rural bank, which meets all the needs of the rural population for financing and various banking services, must take place gradually according to a well-thought plan. This plan should consider the bank’s financial capabilities and its employees' qualification and training to provide new products, in addition to the priority in providing these products according to their significance and urgency. Moreover, it is worth mentioning that the bank has amended all its basic systems in accordance with the Legislative Decree No. 30 of 2005, and in line with the instructions and decisions of the Monetary and Credit Council. The purpose of these amendments is to incorporate information technology into the overall banking system, in addition to simplifying and facilitating the procedures for dealing with clients