Lebanon’s myopic economy has long chased profits for the few at the expense of the general public. Now, faced with multiple crises, it has never been more pressing to consider innovative working models to facilitate public participation in the economy and ensure equitable wealth creation and distribution for all. Existing cooperatives have achieved major gains for gender inclusion, for ensuring mutual profitability in an economy otherwise marked by extreme inequality, and for presenting a viable organisational structure to receive foreign currency through aid and exports. But without a dedicated policy approach, sustainable and non-partisan credit programmes, and mechanisms to ensure centralised regulatory oversight, Lebanon’s existing cooperatives risk being drowned out by the corporate monopolies and oligopolies which dominate many markets.