Azerbaijan, Baku, April 20 / Trend N.Ismayilova /
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) plans to increase its portfolio in the region by 12-15 percent in 2011, BSTDB president Andrei Kondakov told Trend.
"The economic assistance to the region remains the bank's main activity. We plan on increasing our portfolio by 12-15 percent in the whole region. The BSTDB Board of Directors' next meeting, to be held in late April, will mull new projects," Kondakov said.
He said that following a difficult 2009, which was marked by severe consequences on the Black Sea region economies, the situation in the global economy and in the region is gradually returning to normal. Most of the Black Sea states begin to emerge from the crisis.
"We expect most of them to show positive growth in 2011. Given the present trends, we can expect that the Black Sea region will return to the sustainable development path in the next four years, but growth will be slightly lower compared to the first eight years of the 21st century," he added.
Kondakov said earlier the region was one of the fastest growing with an average annual growth rate of 6-7 percent per year. The new trajectory of annual growth is projected to be established at the level of 3.5-4 percent per annum.
"Azerbaijan's economy is among the least affected by the crisis; the growth rate has never gone into the negative zone. Such a development creates additional opportunities for our bank to expand its activities in the country," he said.
BSTDB has been working 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 - 13.5 percent each, Azerbaijan - 5 percent, Albania - 2 percent, Armenia and Moldova - one percent each, and Georgia - 0.5 percent. Azerbaijan's share in the bank's loan portfolio is 5 percent. The Bank supports the principles of regional cooperation and is involved in financing projects in member countries and in equity.