Damascus, August 26 (QNA) - The rescission of Syria's designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism marks a significant shift in the legal and economic environment surrounding the country and paves the way for a new phase of rebuilding international financial and banking relationships and expanding trade flows, remittance flows, and investment, Syrian economic officials and experts told Qatar News Agency (QNA).
They pointed out that fully capitalizing on the decision requires banking, legislative, and financial overhauls, in addition to strengthening confidence in the Syrian economy and investment climate.
Dr. Osama Al Qadi, Senior Adviser to Syria's Ministry of Economy and Industry, said the move does not imply an immediate infusion of funds into Syrian banks, but rather means removing the barrier that had prevented these funds from flowing through the SWIFT system.
He added that it has become easier for Oliver Wyman Financial to persuade companies and correspondent banks to conduct transactions with Syria through the SWIFT system, amid efforts by the Central Bank of Syria to upgrade the country's banking infrastructure and banking regulations.
Al Qadi expected Syria to see the entry of more Western, Arab, and Turkish banks by the end of this year and during the first six months of next year, along with a paradigm shift in electronic payment systems and banking services.
What matters more, he underlined, is compliance with international banking regulations, ensuring transparency, and eliminating any suspicions of money laundering, all of which would help build trust between non-Syrian and Syrian banks.
For his part, Syrian People's Assembly member Aqeel Hussein described the decision as a final shift in Washington's perspective on its relationship with Syria, suggesting that it would pave the way for rebuilding that relationship on the basis of confidence, friendship, respect, and cooperation.
The decision, Hussein noted, manifestly demonstrates a significant change in the US viewpoint and priorities toward Syria, highlighting that the United States had previously viewed Syria as an adversary or a country with which cooperation, engagement, and assistance were not warranted, while the sanctions affected virtually every aspect of Syrians' lives.
The move also conspicuously unlocks prospects for Syria to return to playing its much-heralded role in the region as a partner in promoting stability and security in the Middle East, in addition to helping rebuild the region through positive cooperation and partnerships, Hussein noted.
Hussein further suggested that, from a legal standpoint, the decision telegraphs that Syria is no longer legally blocked from allowing firms and nations to forge economic, political, and military deals with it. He described the matter as a final ruling but contended that practical engagement with Syria will remain connected to how every nation, partner, and enterprise views the country in terms of shared interests.
He stressed the importance of the decision from a moral standpoint after fifty years of sanctions and isolation, noting that countries, companies, and institutions interested in investment, technology, reconstruction, and other areas may not move quickly to engage with Syria. Instead, they will assess the situation and study conditions in Syria.
Hussein stressed the need for Syria's banking sector to strengthen the world's confidence in it and capitalize on the new circumstances Syria is experiencing, allowing the decisions and measures that have been taken to translate into tangible results on the ground and generate economic benefits.
From an economic standpoint, Dr. Ibrahim Nafeh Qushji, an economic and banking expert, said that the lifting of sanctions and the rescission of Syria's designation herald a new era, bringing broad economic opportunities as well as challenges.
Qushji explained that removing the restrictions eliminates one of the biggest legal barriers that had prevented global companies and banks from engaging with Syria, expecting a direct impact on foreign trade flows through the removal of restrictions that had affected shipping and insurance operations, the resumption of financial transfers through official channels, and increased international interest in the energy and services sectors.
آ  He noted that Syrian banks are now able to move toward reestablishing correspondent banking relationships with global banks, enabling them to receive transfers in foreign currencies, facilitate import and export transactions, and attract investment that requires a stable and secure banking environment.
International banks, in turn, will require updated systems to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, greater transparency in financial data, and regulatory assurances from the Central Bank of Syria, Qushji remarked, stressing that these requirements are not sanctions but rather standard operating conditions for any integration into the global financial system.
Qushji expected the decision to open the door to investment, but noted that investors need clarity in investment laws, a judicial environment that ensures the protection of property rights, relative exchange-rate stability, and a banking sector capable of facilitating the repatriation of profits without restrictions.
He added that the energy, oil and gas, infrastructure, agriculture, food-processing, financial and banking, health, and pharmaceutical sectors could be among those to benefit from the new opening.
For his part, Dr. Firas Shabo, Professor of Financial Management at Basaksehir University in Istanbul, said the decision is not an isolated event but rather the outgrowth of a series of steps that began in 2025, considering it a removal of the legal barrier to investment, financial transfers, and international partnerships with Syria.
He explained to QNA that the decision's immediate impact would not be an increase in exports within days, but rather a reduction in the risks of doing business with Syria and the removal of the legal barrier facing entities seeking to engage with Syria.
Shabo noted that trade would be among the sectors to respond most quickly, expecting trade-financing costs to gradually decline as correspondent banks become less cautious about doing business with Syria.
However, this will hinge on Syrian banks' ability to implement international standards for combating money laundering and terrorist financing and protecting customer accounts, thereby facilitating the establishment of correspondent banking relationships, financing letters of credit, and processing international transfers, he said.
Shabo further remarked that investment would not respond quickly because investors need to know the laws that protect their funds, their ability to repatriate their funds, the strength of the judiciary in the country, and the degree of monetary and financial stability, explaining that the decision removes a major obstacle but does not automatically restore Syria's integration into the global financial system.
He added that a correspondent bank's willingness to establish a relationship is different from, and partially independent of, the rescission of the designation and the lifting of US sanctions, as it is also governed by the requirements of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Shabo pointed to the need for laws combating money laundering and terrorist financing, restructuring the banking sector, strengthening capital, and enhancing its capacity to conduct international settlements.
He expected the greatest impact in the initial phase to come from regional investors before gradually expanding to international investors, provided the key elements of the investment environment are clear, foremost among them security, the judiciary, property rights, taxes, customs, the exchange rate, profit repatriation, banking, governance, corruption, and competition.
By far, the most important challenge will be whether the much-heralded opening can produce a rock-solid legal, regulatory, and financial foundation capable of restoring confidence among international banks, investors, and businesses.
The forthcoming changes will be closely watched as Syria seeks to grow out of decades of sanctions and isolation and reconnect its economy with global commerce.
The new phase is an outgrowth of the measures taken since 2025, but its success will ultimately hinge on whether Syria can turn those decisions and measures into concrete results on the ground. The sectors best positioned to benefit could fare well as the economy opens up, attracts investment, and gradually reintegrates into the global financial system. (QNA)