By agreement with the government, Solidere has special powers of eminent domain as well as a limited regulatory authority codified in law, making the company a form of public-private partnership.

Solidere was founded on 5 May 1994 under the authority of the Council of Development and Reconstruction and following the vision of then-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

[1] Solidere is widely credited as the most important force behind Beirut's reemergence, in recent years, as a bustling urban destination with a chance to earn back its prewar title of "Paris of the Middle East".

Solidere's main functions are the supervision of the government-authorized reconstruction plan, financing and developing the infrastructure, new construction and rehabilitation of war-torn structures, urban landscaping and the management of property.

Solidere was founded after the government chose the framework of the public-private Real Estate Holding Company (REHCO) as the most viable option to reconstruct the central district, which was severely damaged and demolished, and emptied of its pre-war economic and demographic activity.

[3] The practical nonexistence of a functional government after the war, and the near-impossibility to align all stakeholders, including property owners, into one unified and feasible vision, called for private resources to plan and execute a project of such scale and importance.

It can be argued that without this large-scale intervention, the centre would have at best re-developed in a chaotic and uncoordinated manner, the way that other areas of the capital are experiencing.

Among those was a group of academics and urban planners who fueled a public debate about the goals and methods of reconstruction, especially the large-scale demolition and redesign, as outlined by an initial plan submitted by Dar Al Handassah.

Other critical views saw the plan as disconnecting the centre from the rest of the city's fabric[5] and transforming it into an "island of modernity".

One property owner involved described the process as “one of the greatest swindles of the century.”[8] In 1996, following the Israeli seventeen day bombardment of Lebanon, Solidere revised it's $30 billion plan, Horizon 2000.

Its share price on the Beirut exchange has risen sharply in recent years, from about US$5 in early 2004 to a high of $39 in September 2008.

Some rumors say that he owned a majority stake in Solidere before his assassination in 2005, and the Hariri family continues to be a principal shareholder today.

[12] Also, according to Faysal Barbir, Director-Capital Markets at FFA Private Bank, Solidere has been selling properties since the beginning of 2020 at a higher pace which would reflect on its earnings for the current year.

Solidere shares were the only option available on the stock market, especially following press reports about possible haircuts and restructuring of the banking sector.

[13] At the end of 2020, the rise in sales allowed the company to settle its entire debt to banks totaling more than $200 million.