LIBC Gala honors top Lebanese banker, local  business leaders

DEARBORN — The Lebanese and Arab American communities honored one of Lebanon’s most successful and influential leaders in recent memory this past week as the Lebanese International Business Council of Michigan (LIBC) welcomed Riad Salamé, the governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, to Dearborn.

Salamé has won numerous international awards throughout his career as governor, which began in 1993, for helping to preserve the integrity of the Lebanese pound (lira in Arabic) while sustaining social and economic growth in the country even through difficult times.

Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly (left), Governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon Riad Salamى , LIBC President Ned Fawaz, and Lebanese American Heritage Club President Sam Salamey, respectively, at a reception at the Hyatt in Dearborn as Salame receives the key to the city of Dearborn. PHOTOS: Nafeh AbuNab/American Elite Studios

The country has experienced a war and numerous conflicts as well as an occupation by Israel to the south before its liberation in 2000  and also recently faced civil tensions along with the challenges of the world economic crisis from 2007 until the present.

But through it all, Lebanon has remained strong due to the leadership of Salamé and his board members’ leadership in times of crisis.

Salamé was honored with a breakfast at Byblos Banquets in Dearborn on the morning of Wednesday, October 6 before serving as keynote speaker at the LIBC’s Inaugural Gala Event at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dearborn, which was attended by about 750 people.  He also was hosted by the University of Chicago before making his way to Dearborn. He toured the Arab American Museum on Wednesday and spoke at the University of Michigan-Dearborn in front of 200 people, most of them students, on Thursday, October 7.

Salamé was also scheduled to attend the International Monetary Fund’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C. on Friday.

LIBC Founder and President Ned Fawaz introduced Salamé to the packed crowd at the Hyatt event.

“Mr. Salamé, you have served your country well on many, many occasions, you saved the Lebanese currency and you protected the Lebanese banks during the financial crisis, you made us and your country very proud,” he said.

Lebanon began experiencing a real economic growth rate of about 8% beginning in 2008 until the present according to Salamé and his assistants, a stat that they counted as the most important indicator of the country’s solid economic footing for the time being.

Fawaz also mentioned Salamé’s trip to Wall Street in New York City in 2009 during which he was asked by top bankers to teach them his secrets.

“Many central banks have now begun learning and copying your ways,” Fawaz said.

“Lebanon has offered so much to the world from the alphabet to Gibran Kahlil Gibran to Riad Salamé, we thank your Mr. Salamé for taking the time to visit,” he said.

Fawaz also talked about the LIBC’s role in fostering local and international trade with Lebanon. He said that business transactions consummated between the U.S. and Lebanon are currently $10 billion a year but that the number could be doubled to $20 billion considering the positive economic outlook in Lebanon.

“The LIBC is the bridge between Lebanon and America and the bridge between Michigan and Lebanon,” he said. “Our objective is to bring people together to benefit the state, country, and abroad.”

Salamé took the podium after Fawaz to a standing ovation before discussing the state of the economy in Lebanon and the world including some of the decisions that had to be made to bring stability.

“We just experienced the biggest crisis in the world,” he said, noting that it almost negatively affected the American standard of living forever.

“Today, they’re printing money. What if the economy comes back, how will it be absolved? Through inflation or other tools? We will see.

Dr. Yasser Hammoud (far right in first picture), CEO of United Outstanding Physicians, received an Excellence in Arab American Business Award, as did Osman Minkar (C, second picture), the CEO of CIG Corporation. Dr. Hammoud founded the Ford-Tel Medical Center in Dearborn Heights and Minkar founded CIG while also advising on the establishment of the Center for Arab American Philanthropy at Wayne State University.

“Lebanon also had tough times and we had to print money and buy government bonds to keep the inflation rate at 1-4% for a deposit of 12 years…in many ways this was a crisis of the people but it was done to protect the purchasing power of the currency; confidence is the most important element in any economy.”

Salamé urged Lebanese banks to not buy risky stocks and derivatives, going against conventional wisdom at the time, and these directives helped the banks avoid pitfalls that many American banks fell into.

Among the awards Salamé has received are the 2003 Best Central Bank Governor (Man of the Year) Euromoney Award, which he won again in 2006, and the 1996 Euromoney Award for Best Central Bank Governor in the Arab world.

He was also named a knight of the French Legion of Honor by French President Jacques Chirac in

May 1997 and named an officer of the legion by French President Nicolas Sarkozy in December 2009.

Salamé was given the Excellence in Financial Leadership Award from the LIBC on the evening as well as a key to the city from Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly. Other awardees included Yasser T. Hammoud, CEO of United Outstanding Physicians and Osman Minkar, CEO of CIG Corporation, who were both given Excellence in Arab American Business Awards.

Hammoud founded the Ford-Tel Medical Center in Dearborn Heights and Minkar founded CIG, a wealth management and advisory services firm in metro Detroit while advising on the establishment of the Center for Arab American Philanthropy.

After the Michigan-Dearborn event, LIBC 2nd Vice President and Banquet Coordinator Suehaila Amen reflected on the week’s events in Dearborn.

“This was something that’s never happened before and it was truly a historic event for the community. Everything went smoothly and we thank His Excellency, Governor Salamé for his visit,” she said.