Middle East and Africa Bank (MEAB)

Middle East and Africa Bank (MEAB) is a Lebanese commercial bank. It appears in economic-statecraft analysis because its former chairman and general manager, Kassem Hejeij, was designated by the United States in 2015 and because civil litigants have made allegations concerning the bank. Those facts do not establish that MEAB itself is designated or liable.

On 10 June 2015, the United States Treasury designated Kassem Hejeij under Executive Order 13224. Treasury alleged that he had provided financial services to Hezbollah and described his position at MEAB. The designation applied to Hejeij personally. In Hejeij v Gacki, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia reviewed OFAC's denial of his delisting petition and upheld the agency's decision under the deferential Administrative Procedure Act standard. That judgment did not convict Hejeij of a criminal offence or designate MEAB.

Plaintiffs in United States civil litigation have also named MEAB and alleged that banks provided services connected to attacks. A complaint records allegations, not findings. This entry does not repeat untested detail from pleadings and does not infer institutional knowledge or intent without a final judgment.

As at 29 July 2026, MEAB does not appear by name on the public OFAC Sanctions List Search used for this review. That negative check is date-sensitive and not a compliance opinion. Users must screen aliases, ownership and counterparties against live lists.

MEAB illustrates an attribution problem common in financial pressure campaigns. A designation of a bank officer can create correspondent and reputational risk for the institution without legally designating the bank. Accurate analysis must separate the individual, the institution, official allegations, civil claims and adjudicated findings.

See also

Kassem Hejeij · Asset freeze · Correspondent banking de-risking · Office of Foreign Assets Control (United States) · Lebanon · Jammal Trust Bank

Sources

1. US Department of the Treasury, designation of Kassem Hejeij, 10 June 2015.
2. *Hejeij v Gacki*, 2022, opinion.
3. OFAC Sanctions List Search.
4. Middle East and Africa Bank, official website.