GNU Suspends 27 Companies Over $146.7M in Import Credits

TRIPOLI – Tripoli based Government of National Unity has suspended the operations of 27 companies after a review of their compliance with foreign trade rules, the Ministry of Economy announced.

The companies had been issued letters of credit worth about $146.7 million in the first seven months of 2026, money used to finance imports and other business activities.

However, on the back end all of that sum went to just three beneficiaries, all from the same family. One, received around $79 million, 2nd arounf $52.2 million; and 3rd about $15.5 million.

The ministry also froze the commercial registration, import licences and importers’ register entries of the companies tied to the three, pending further examination. It described the move as a precautionary step to verify records and legal standing, and said final findings would follow once the audit is complete.

Even at $146.7 million, this is only a small piece of a much bigger problem. Corruption is still Libya’s heaviest burden, a rapid drain that has helped turn an oil-rich country, once able to care well for its people, toward decline. Cases like this, where a few elites take most of the state-backed credit, show how public money quietly disappears while the country stops moving forward.

Whether these companies actually broke the law is for the audit to decide, but the pattern is one most Libyans already know well.