Azerbaijan, Baku, Aug. 6 / corr Trend U.Ismayilova /
Iranian founders of earlier cancelled Azerbaijani-Iranian joint-stock insurance company Azer-Asiya may appeal to the Azerbaijani State Insurance Control to get a license for insurance activity of a new foreign company, Namik Khalilov, head of the State Insurance Control Service at the Azerbaijani Finance Ministry, said Friday.
The Azerbaijani shareholders of the previously liquidated Azeri-Asiya Insurance Company (state-owned commercial IC Azersigorta) sold its stake (51 percent) to the Iranian shareholder IC Asiya Sıgorta (49 percent), Azersigorta Deputy Chairman Aftandil Hajiyev said earlier. The decision to sell the Azerbaijani shares was adopted at a general meeting in June.
"The state service has not received such an appeal from Iranian shareholders," Khalilov added.
If Iranian shareholders could submit all necessary documents in line with the Azerbaijan insurance legislation, then the Iranian company will be issued a license.
"However, rehabilitation of a license for insurance activities of Azer-Asiya is impossible due to violations revealed earlier,"Hajiyev urged.
The process of selling shares have already been completed and only a few issues to be resolved soon. The Azer-Asiya company retained its status as a joint stock company and it is possible that it would resume its activities as an wholly Iranian owned insurance company. It is also possible that the company will operate in another business sphere in Azerbaijan, Hajiyev said.
Earlier, the Azerbaijani Finance Ministry refused to Azeri-Asia insurance company to extend term of license on insurance activity, which was issued Nov. 21, 2002. The ministry refused from extending the term of license after an analysis into the company's activities from Oct. 1, 2006 to Oct. 1, 2007, which revealed inconsistencies with the insurance legislation and the necessary requirements. Examinations also revealed some facts of violations.
After announcing this decision, the company's board took a decision to pass its portfolio to another BE& G insurance company without changing the terms of agreements. At the moment of closing the company had 17,000 individual and 60 corporative clients.
Azer-Asiya joint insurance company has operated at the Azerbaijani insurance company since 1997.