BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 2. The Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) would be pleased to have Azerbaijan on board as a shareholder country, former chairman of the National Bank of Kazakhstan Grigory Marchenko told Trend.
He made the remark on the sidelines of the annual meeting and business forum of the bank in Almaty.
"Two years ago, I was in Azerbaijan, and during negotiations on behalf of the bank, I proposed the country's accession to the EDB as a shareholder. In general, we have such a position that we, as the Eurasian Development Bank, promote economic cooperation in our region. In this sense, we would certainly be happy to see Azerbaijan as a shareholder country," Marchenko said.
According to him, the bank currently has six shareholder countries (Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Armenia), and negotiations are underway for Uzbekistan to join.
"If Azerbaijan someday wants to join our bank, I think it can be done quite quickly," the advisor to the board chairman noted.
Referring to the possibility of financing the projects of Azerbaijani entrepreneurs, Marchenko emphasized that not only the decision at the level of the credit committee but also the approval of the Bank's Council is needed to approve the project.
"Any loan to a territory outside the shareholder countries requires the approval of the Council. This is a rather lengthy process. The Chairman of the Council of our bank is the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, Oljas Bektenov. For our activity with Azerbaijan to move forward at a rapid pace, it would be good for the state to join the number of shareholders of the bank. Any joint infrastructure projects with the bank's participants will be considered, of course. However, the optimal solution would be to join the bank," he added.
To note, the EDB is an international financial organization, that carries out investment activities aimed at developing economies, trade and economic relations, and integration processes in the countries of the Eurasian region.
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