Azerbaijan, Baku, 11 February / corr Trend I.Khalilova, A.Ismayilova / The National Bank of Azerbaijan (NBA) is to set up talks to attract new foreign managers to manage its official currency reserves under the NBA's possession, Elman Rustamov, the chairman of the Managing Board of the NBA, said on 11 February.
An increase in the country's currency reserves has raised the requirements for the form and efficiency of their management. Major requirement set for management over reserves is security, liquidity, maintenance at the necessary level with the consideration of the development of economy and profitability.
"With the consideration of three factors last year we used the currency reserves to invest in operation purposes, Rustamov said. The currency reserves were diversified with the consideration of world developments and we are working at expanding the managers' list."
Within the framework of the three-year Reserves Advice and Management Program (RAMP) at present the Treasury of the World Bank (WB) provides the NBA with technical assistance to increase its potential in assets management. The NBA carries out work in two directions, holding meetings and estimation into the foreign managers and increasing potential for conduct of securities transactions by the NBA at the world fiscal markets.
Earlier, the NBA head stated that $200mln may be attracted for foreign management and it would be more real to raise the portfolio to $0.5bln.
Currently $270mln is under the management of three managers, Treasury of the World Bank, Swiss Bank UBS and US JP Morgan. Due to the inefficiency of the management, the NBA cancelled the contract with ABN Amro, the Dutch bank. The WB manages $110mln, UBS - $105mln, JP Morgan - $55mln.
As of 1 February, the NBA's currency reserves comprised $3.923.6mln.
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