The Central Bank of Syria restricted the exchange of currency in its branches in June

The Central Bank of Syria has decided to extend the deadline for replacing the old currency by a full month, starting from June 1.

  The governor of the Central Bank, Abdelkader Al-Hassiriya, said on his Facebook page on Friday, May 1, that as part of the "good progress" of the currency exchange process, it was decided to extend the period for an additional 30 days, starting from June 1 to June 30.

Exclusion of exchange companies from replacement

He pointed  out that the substitution operations during the past month will be carried out exclusively through the branches of operating banks, without the involvement of exchange companies, with the exception of the governorates of Raqqa and Hasakah,  where the substitution operations will continue to be carried  out through both banks and exchange companies, taking into account the specificity of those areas and contributing to facilitating procedures for citizens.

The Central Bank of Syria's limitation of the exchange of currency to the branches of operating banks, and the exclusion of exchange companies and offices, represents a remarkable development in the process of currency exchange, noting that at the end of December 2025, it identified 55 financial institutions as approved centers in the process of replacing the old Syrian currency.

The process of replacing the old currency began at the beginning of the year, and then the Central Bank of Syria extended it for 60 days, starting from the beginning of last April.

The coexistence of the two currencies continues

Through the Central Bank channel on Telegram, Al-Hossiliya said that the coexistence between the two currencies, the new Syrian pound and the old pound, will remain in place until the end of the specified exchange period, stressing that this measure aims to ensure the stability of transactions and facilitate transfers within the approved legal frameworks, while stressing the need for all institutions and individuals to fully comply with the instructions issued in this regard.

The Central Bank stressed the need for all institutions and individuals to fully comply with the instructions and controls issued in this regard, warning that any violation will expose the perpetrator to legal accountability and take the necessary measures against him, in accordance with the laws and regulations in force.

The bank called on citizens to follow up on official updates and take advantage of the additional period to ensure that the replacement operations are completed easily and smoothly within the specified time.

50% of the old currency

In an interview with "Al-Arabiya Business" on Sunday, April 19, Al-Hassiriya announced the completion of about 50% of the process of replacing the monetary mass in the country, which officially began on January 1, 2026 , explaining that the bank is actually undertaking a real replacement process and has not "injected new currencies into the Syrian market," and therefore "deficit financing is not included in the Central Bank's dictionary at all," as he put it.

According to previous statements by the governor of the Central Bank of Syria, the replacement rate reached about 35% of the old monetary mass until the end of last February, after more than 13 trillion old pounds out of 42 trillion were replaced, before the issuance of Decree No. (222/H) to extend the deadline for replacing the old currency denominations with the new ones for an additional sixty days starting from April 1, 2026.