Azerbaijan, Baku / Trend corr I. Khalilova / The administration of the National Bank of Azerbaijan (NBA) decided to authorize German Commerz Bank to open a representation office in Azerbaijan, Adishirin Gasimov , the Director of the NBA's Department on Control over Credit Organizations, said on 22 November.
According to Gasimov , the request from the Commerz Bank is the only received from such prestigious foreign banks so far. US City Bank expressed its interest in opening of a representation office, and French Societe General, Russian VneshtorgBank applied for purchasing a share in Azerbaijani banks.
Kazakhstan's Bank TuranAlem and Khalik Bank have showed interest for entering Azerbaijani financial market. TuranAlem plans to open a branch in Azerbaijan, and Khalik Bank is expected to purchase a bank, insurance company or some other financial institution. Latvian Parex Bank functioning in Azerbaijan as a representation office decided to change its status, but has not yet applied to the NBA.