Syria's state news agency SANA reported that the Syrian currency, printed under the administration of deposed President Bashar al-Assad in Russia, arrived at Damascus airport, as per the statement from Syria's central bank on Friday.
The specific amount of local currency received was not disclosed by the central bank.
In January, Syria's new central bank governor, Maysaa Sabreen, expressed her preference to acquire Syrian pounds to mitigate fluctuations in inflation rates, according to a Reuters interview.
Recent reports show a strengthening of the Syrian pound on the black market, where it traded at 9,850 pounds to the U.S. dollar on Thursday. The official foreign exchange rate has remained stable near 13,000 pounds to the U.S. dollar, as stated by the central bank.
This development reflects a continual appreciation of the pound since Assad's overthrow by Islamist rebels in December, attributed to an increased influx of Syrians returning from abroad and the relaxation of strict controls on foreign currency trade.
Nevertheless, concerns about a shortage of Syrian pounds have arisen. As per Reuters sources, the central bank holds foreign exchange reserves of approximately , a significant decline from the $18.5 billion estimated by the IMF in 2010, a year prior to the onset of the civil war.
A recent report by the crisis analysis unit of international aid organization MercyCorps indicated that households are struggling to meet basic needs due to liquidity shortages in the market.
Before engaging with Russia, Syria's banknotes were produced by Oesterreichische Banknoten-und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH, a subsidiary of the Austrian central bank.