Jammal Trust - Forzol

General information

The Bank was established in 1963 under the name « Investment Bank » with an initial capital of LL. 1million only. It operated from a single office in Martyrs’ Square. The insignificant capital and commensurately inadequate resources limited the scale of its financial transactions and inhibited its development.

In 1966 Litex Bank took over and increased the capital to LL 3 million then ended its services on September 30th 1971.

On that date the entire share capital was purchased by a new group of shareholders who elected an entirely new Board of Directors under the Chairmanship of Mr. Ali Abdullah Jammal.

A few days later the name was changed to Jammal Investment Bank S.A.L. and had been authorized an increase in capital to L.L 10 million. By 1st April 1972 the new capital was fully paid.

Head Office location in Martyrs' Square was remote from Beirut's banking and commercial center with a view to attaining the new Management's objective of furthering the Bank's operation along the best lines and putting it on an equal footing with its most progressive competitors, extensive new premises were taken towards the end of 1971 in Riad Solh Street (« The Street of Banks »). It is there that most banks in Lebanon have their main offices. Five floors in the new building were completely refurbished so that the Bank's Head Office could move in by June 1972 with new equipment’s, including the latest electronic devices.

In the same year the Chairman, Mr. Ali Abdullah Jammal accompanied by some of his senior officers, made an extended tour of Africa aiming to establish relations with the thriving and important Lebanese business communities. As a prominent veteran expatriate himself Mr. Jammal's long and distinguished record as an industrious and successful businessman in Africa ensured a very warm welcome.

Exceeding all expectations to the offering of the Bank's full range of services, both in Africa and in the Lebanon to the expatriate communities, led to a very positive response. The many business and personal accounts opened reflected their knowledge of Mr. Jammal's track record, their appreciation that he, and indeed a good number of his senior staff, had a background like their own and facilitating the contact among each other.

With such an expansion it was necessary to increase the capital and effectively the Board of Directors in their meeting which dated May 23rd 1977 decided to increase the capital from 10,000,000 L.L. to 15,000,000 L.L. (Fifteen Million Lebanese Pounds).

The above increment was paid on 17th November 1977.

The support of numerous, prosperous expatriate Lebanese businessmen, in the Middle East and Europe as well as in Africa, had contributed in a major way to the steady growth of the Bank's business and in February of that year was resolved to increase the capital from LL 15million to LL 30million. The new shares were to be fully subscribed by or before 31 December 1978 and were to be acquired against the infusion of fresh funds from the present shareholders, subscribing pari passo their existing shareholdings. There was no change in the constitution of the Company, its ownership or its management; however its name was changed to Jammal Trust Bank S.A.L.

Jammal Trust Bank has built a reputation for over five decades as being a commercial banking institution. It also developed a reputation for supporting both Lebanon’s SME markets through commercial lending and Africa’s Lebanese Diaspora through a large scale trade finance in more than one west and central African country.

To enhance such ties, alongside a significant share of the Lebanese market for small business loans, the bank has set up representative offices in Nigeria and the Ivory Coast. While on the drawing board our plans for expanding JTB’s African presence to cover several countries over the coming years, as well as in Europe.

In 2013, “JTB” will be celebrating its 50th anniversary, marketing half a century of perseverance in speaking the people’s language.