International Fraud Awareness Week Webinar: Meltdown of the Financial Sector in Lebanon: Was a Ponzi Scheme Involved at the Central Bank of Lebanon?

Description

Gina Chammas is a globally recognized anti-corruption and forensic accounting expert, currently serving as a Senior Advisor for the MENA region at The American Anti-Corruption Institute (AACI) and Founder of Lebanon CACM, a dedicated corruption fighting initiative. 

With over forty years of exemplary experience, Ms. Chammas’s expertise is centered on Financial Investigations, Litigation Support, and Quality Assurance Audits. She is a seasoned Expert Witness for the courts in both the U.S. and MENA region, and a Principal Audit Partner in Lebanon, with foundational experience as an Audit Manager at Deloitte & Touche USA and a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in California. 

The Lebanese banking collapse is one of the most significant financial disasters of the past decade. This session moves beyond liquidity analysis to apply a forensic accounting lens to the crisis. We will dissect the alleged "financial engineering" at the Central Bank to determine if it constituted a Ponzi-like structure that relied on new deposits to pay unsustainable interest. Expert Gina Chammas will investigate the core infractions of the BDL Governor and other high-profile Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs), detailing evidence of illicit enrichment, money laundering, and asset misappropriation. The presentation concludes with crucial lessons learned in detecting these macro-level red flags, the long-term impact on the Lebanese economy, and the vital path forward for public sector integrity and asset recovery.