In an analytical article titled “Taking Back Control,” Arab Banker magazine outlined the journey of the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) on its path toward reform and enhancing governance. The article highlighted the impact of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2769 (2025), which grants the LIA the right to invest its frozen cash reserves in low-risk term deposits at selected financial institutions under the freeze. It also permits the LIA to reinvest accumulated cash returns managed by investment fund managers while remaining subject to the freezing measures.

The article highlighted several key points, the most important of which:

• The United Nations Security Council granted the LIA its long-awaited right to restore its ability to reinvest assets frozen since 2011, culminating years of institutional reform and continuous effort, and regaining the international community’s trust in its ability to protect the wealth of the Libyan people.

• Security Council Resolution No. (2769) of 2025 marks a decisive turning point in the LIA’s history, after overcoming more than a decade of challenges and divisions. Today, the LIA regains its capacity to reinvest nearly forty billion dollars of the total value of its assets through a reform approach aimed at achieving financial sustainability while promoting transparency and accountability in managing the national wealth.

• Dr. Ali Mahmoud Hassen Mohammed, the LIA’s Chairman and CEO, led the pivotal transformation phase with a three-pillar strategy that emphasises rebuilding trust, enhancing governance, and improving investment management according to international best standards and practices.

• “LIA had never, since its inception had a clear strategy. This was the first time we had such a robust plan that was fully implemented,” says Dr. Ali, affirming that currently, the LIA looks to the past to correct its mistakes and towards the future to establish its position among leading sovereign wealth funds. He also outlined a series of successful achievements over recent years that had a direct impact on the issuance of the Security Council resolution, including:

Enhancing the level of transparency and disclosure by cooperating with leading international auditing firms to finalize financial accounts for previous years and issuing consolidated financial statements at the LIA’s group level for the first time.

The LIA successfully reduced and restructured its subsidiaries, transforming from a complex network full of gaps into an organized entity subject to accountability and financial discipline standards.

Improving the LIA’s rating regarding compliance with the Santiago Principles on sound governance; over four years, its ranking rose from 98th to 51st worldwide, marking a major qualitative leap and clearly indicating enhanced transparency and governance.

• Dr. Ali affirms that the LIA is “a sovereign entity affiliated with the Libyan state, that exercises its duties independently,” explaining that this independence enabled it to win legal battles in international courts to protect and preserve the funds of the Libyan people from political interference.

• Currently, the LIA aims to prove to the world that it does not seek a complete lifting of freezing measures but rather to implement what Dr. Ali calls “smart sanctions” that allow for effective and responsible management of the national wealth.

• For the LIA, the new phase focuses on reinvesting the frozen investment assets with a cautious and responsible approach aimed at achieving sustainable growth, reducing risks, and balancing decision-making independence with international commitments. The LIA is confidently moving toward a new phase of growth and institutional stability. The article concluded with Dr. Ali affirming that the LIA’s experience exemplifies the will to reform and national responsibility after years of challenges and divisions.

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