Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 6
By Anvar Mammadov – Trend:
The liquidity of the banking sector of Azerbaijan exceeds four billion manats, said Zakir Nuriyev, head of the Azerbaijan Banks Association (ABA), at the 5th Investors’ Fair in Baku Oct. 6.
According to him, this means that market participants can now attract funds not from abroad, but from the domestic market.
“Micro-finance organizations, non-bank credit organizations, leasing companies will now be able to attract liquid funds in Azerbaijani manats from the domestic market. Today, it is just needed to determine how to use this opportunity,” he added.
ABA head noted that the mechanism of open inter-bank auctions will be prepared by the end of the year.
“The final version of such auctions will be developed and approved in the near future. After that, a mechanism will start working to distribute liquid funds accumulated in the banking sector; liquid funds between market participants, and in 2018, all financial institutions will have access to this mechanism.
Thus, the institution of distribution of liquid funds between market’s participants will work,” said Nuriyev.
According to him, the solution of problems with liquidity will allow reducing the interest rates on micro loans.
“Microfinance institutions issue loans at an interest rate of 40-45 percent per year. However, today the situation has changed. If the banking sector used previously to work on attracting liquid funds, today our main task is to transfer these funds to the Azerbaijani economy under favorable conditions,” added ABA head.
Baku hosts the 5th Investors’ Fair, titled “Future of Micro-finance in Azerbaijan: Difficulties and Opportunities”. More than 100 representatives of the financial sector of Azerbaijan and other countries are taking part in the event.