Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara has carried out the country's first international Visa transaction as Damascus continues to reintegrate with the global financial services system.
Visa worked with Fransabank Lebanon as the acquiring financial institution and Paymera for Wednesday's transaction, it said in a statement. The company had said in December that it would return to Syria after signing an agreement with the country’s central bank.
Mr Al Shara swiped the card to buy a coffee in the presence of the Syrian Central Bank governor Mohammed Safwat Raslan, who called it a “new beginning”.
“For the first payment transaction using a Visa card to take place in the heart of Damascus the day after Syria's name was removed from the list of state sponsors of terrorism, is – for me – a feeling that's hard to sum up in words,” he said.
The US State Department this week officially removed Syria from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, clearing a major obstacle in Damascus's economic recovery.
The move is expected to make it easier for Syrian banks to establish relationships with international lenders and for companies to attract foreign investment.
The latest Visa transaction paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and will support transactions for international visitors, Mr Raslan said.
“The Central Bank of Syria views the modernisation of the national payments ecosystem and its greater integration with international payment systems as an important part of the broader modernisation of Syria’s financial infrastructure,” he said.
“Maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential to safeguarding the integrity of payment and settlement operations and strengthening confidence in the payment's ecosystem.”
Meanwhile, Mastercard and QNB Group also said on Thursday that they have processed Syria’s first international card payment in more than 15 years.
Following the technical reconnection of Syria’s payments ecosystem to Mastercard’s global network, QNB Syria processed the first point-of-sale transaction at an eligible approved local merchant using an internationally issued Mastercard, the companies said in a statement.
“By connecting merchants to international payment capabilities, we are enabling businesses to offer customers greater choice and convenience while supporting the transition towards a more modern and secure digital payments ecosystem,” said Yousef Al Neama, group chief business officer at QNB Group.
Syria has begun to accelerate the global reintegration of its economy following the toppling of the Assad regime in 2024 and under the government led by Mr Al Shara.
In June last year, the country completed its first electronic transfer via the Swift system, which allows banks and financial institutions to send and receive payment instructions for international transactions. It had been excluded from it for 14 years during the civil war.
In December, US President Donald Trump also repealed the Caesar Act, paving the way for more investment. The European Union also removed economic sanctions in May in a push to reintegrate Syria into the global economy.
“Over the past several months, we have taken important steps to support the reintroduction of digital payments in Syria and greater participation in the global digital economy within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements,” said Leila Serhan, senior vice president at Visa. “We plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria.”
