Baku, Azerbaijan, July 13
By Anvar Mammadov – Trend:
All banks will render digital banking services in Azerbaijan in 3-5 years, Zakir Nuriyev, head of the Azerbaijan Banks Association (ABA), said in an interview with Trend.
“Digitalization is not just a challenge facing the banking sector, it is a challenge of the 21st century, in which we live, and this challenge is facing the economies of the whole world today,” he said.
"I think that Azerbaijani banks have already accepted this challenge and have been working in this direction for several years,” he said. “Around 24 banks are already rendering Internet banking services. Around 12 banks render mobile banking services and their number is growing every year.”
“The banking sector itself will complete the processes necessary to meet these challenges in the next few years,” Nuriyev said. “All banks will render digital services. It will definitely happen in the next 3-5 years. But it is necessary to work for the full digitalization of the country's economy. It is necessary for the banking sector to be able to interact with its other components."
He added that at present, it is important to create the necessary infrastructure for digitalization in the country as the import of this infrastructure requires huge investments.
"The full switch to digital banking requires huge investments and the creation of the necessary infrastructure,” he said. “It is very important to establish own production, whereas today all digital technologies are imported to Azerbaijan from foreign countries and it is expensive.”
“We also think that comprehensive programs must be adopted in this area,” Nuriyev said. “The programs will allow creating a sufficient number of services in this direction. It will allow us to minimize dependence on foreign equipment, systems and software."
“The switch to digital banking leads to the growth of cyber threats and the sector should fight against them,” he said.
Nuriyev said that today it is necessary to create a system to prevent cyber attacks.
"At present, the country’s central bank plans to launch a cashless economy program and our structure is also preparing to join this program," he said. “The issues of full switch to non-cash settlements will be considered as part of this program.”
“But the growth of non-cash settlements leads to an increase in the number of cyber attacks,” Nuriyev said. “At present, our main task is to create a system that can prevent cyber attacks. There are such problems everywhere and Azerbaijan is not an exception. The creation of the system will not solve these problems once and for all.”
“It is necessary to gradually develop and improve the protection system,” he added. “Moreover, problems between banks and clients on the basis of cyber attacks will constantly arise. We created the institution of bank ombudsmen to rapidly solve these problems and plan to intensify its activity. It will allow regulating problems between clients and the bank without judicial intervention, which first of all will speed up the solution of these issues."
As for the facts of revealing counterfeit banknotes in ATMs, Nuriyev added that at present, the banks are actively working to resolve this problem.
"The latest innovation in this area was the equipping of all ATMs with CCTV cameras,” he said. “It allows us to track the whole process step-by-step. In case of appeal, we can view the whole process from the very beginning till the end and solve the problem."