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The Banque de Syrie et du Liban was a French concessionary institution — its notes were legal tender across both the Syrian and Lebanese mandates, with the Banque de France handling production throughout the mandate period. This 1939 issue arrived as the mandate administration was already under considerable political strain, with Syrian nationalists pushing hard against the continued French presence following the shelving of the 1936 independence treaty.

Clément Serveau was a prolific designer for French colonial currency; Ernest Deloche and Jacques Beltrand's brother Georges engraved the respective faces. The Beltrand family connection to Banque de France intaglio work ran across several generations.