Azerbaijan, Baku, April 14 / Trend A.Akhundov /
Azerbaijan's cooperation with the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) greatly contributes to the country's private sector development, Azerbaijani Economic Development Ministry Apparatus head Samir Veliyev said at a meeting with a bank delegation.
"Azerbaijan has been a bank member since its establishment. Today, the country's share in the BSTDB is five percent," Veliyev said.
BSTDB has opened credit lines to 10 local banks - the International Bank of Azerbaijan, Access Bank, AGBank, Unibank, Texnika Bank, Demir Bank, Kapital Bank, Azer-Turk Bank, Bank Standard and Bank Respublika.
"This positively impacts banking sector development and the private sector as a whole," he said.
BSTDB Azerbaijan Representative Mikayil Jabbarov said the growth of the country's share in the bank from the initial 2 to the current five percent reflects Azerbaijan's' increasing influence in the Black Sea region.
BSTDB President Andrei Kondakov said the bank has allocated 94 million euro to implement 20 projects in Azerbaijan.
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank has operated since June 1, 1999.
Today, Greece, Russia and Turkey remain the largest shareholders with stakes of 16.5 percent each. Romania owns 14 percent. Bulgaria and Ukraine own 13.5 percent, with Azerbaijan trailing behind with five percent. Albania owns two percent. Armenia and Moldova own one percent each and Georgia has 0.5 percent.
Economic Development Minister Shahin Mustafayev and his deputy Samir Sharifov are managers in the bank from the Azerbaijani side.