German judicial authorities intend to seek seizure of assets of former Lebanese central bank governor Riyad Salameh in connection with allegations of financial fraud, according to the Handelsblatt newspaper.
In January 2026, the Munich prosecutor's office filed a request with the regional court of the Bavarian capital to seize assets worth approximately EUR 35 million. These assets include high-quality commercial properties in Munich and Hamburg, as well as shares in a real estate company based in Düsseldorf. The authorities have not named the accused, but Handelsblatt reports that it is Salameh.
This trial is part of an investigation that has been underway since mid-2021 jointly by the Munich Public Prosecutor's Office, the Federal Criminal Investigation Office (BKA) and investigative authorities in France and Luxembourg. In addition to Salameh, four other suspects are being sought, including his brother. Salameh's lawyer rejected the charges brought by the Munich Public Prosecutor's Office. The presumption of innocence applies until a legally binding decision is made.
Salameh was governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon from 1993 to 2023. On September 26, 2025, Lebanese judicial authorities released him on bail of USD 14 million. Despite his release, the former official, accused of illegally receiving a $44 million commission from brokerage firm Optimum Invest, has been exempted from a one-year travel ban.
In 2023, Salameh was accused of money laundering in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Monaco and Belgium. According to the newspaper “Al Akhbar“, an investigation by authorities in several European countries found that the former head of the Central Bank charged commissions for the sale of government securities to commercial banks. Most of these funds went not to the Central Bank of Lebanon, but to the account of another brokerage company - Forry, owned by his brother Raja Salameh. At least 500 million USD was thus embezzled, which was used to purchase real estate in Western Europe.
In 2022, human rights activists from the NGO “People Want Regime Change“ filed a lawsuit against the former head of the Central Bank of Lebanon. They accused the high-ranking official of conducting a wrong monetary policy that led to the collapse of the national currency. Since October 2019, when the country fell into an unprecedented socio-economic crisis, the dollar has risen 66 times against the Lebanese pound.