The first Syrian paper money was issued by the French administration under the authority of the Banque de Syrie in 1919 after the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The French introduced the Syrian pound which replaced the Ottoman lira. In 1924 the bank was renamed the Banque de Syrie et du Grand-Liban and issued a combined Lebanese-Syrian currency until 1939 when the currency was split and the bank again changed its name becoming Banque de Syrie et du Liban. In the early 1950s notes were issued by Institut d'Emission de Syrie until 1957 when the Banque Centrale de Syrie assumed responsibility for Syrian paper money.
