Young Lebanese driving crypto ‘revolution’ after banks go bust

The bankrupt country’s tech-savvy youth are increasingly turning to cryptocurrency to shield themselves from currency depreciation, get money in and out of Lebanon, and try to make up the losses they have suffered. — Photo by Jievani Weerasinghe on Unsplash

BEIRUT: On a recent afternoon, Lebanese cryptocurrency trader Mario Awad was sorting out the details of a US$2mil (RM8.37mil) deal with a high-profile customer – complete with a hotel stay and the promise of a lively night out.

“I have (security) officers, politicians, media personalities, everyone is buying crypto,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation between non-stop phone calls at his plush two-storey flat in the coastal town of Jbeil, north of Beirut.