Azerbaijan, Baku / corr. Trend I.Khalilova / On 14 March the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Leasing Company UniLeasing signed a contract in Baku on Bank's joining the capital of the Company.
EBRD plans to invest $0.7 mln to acquire 33% of the shares of the Company. The EBRD will allocate $3 mln credit to support the portfolio of UniLeasing and its regional development. The cost of the project amounts to $3.7 mln.
The EBRD financing will be completed by €250.000 in technical assistance from the Early Transaction Countries Fund to enable the implementation of the enhanced management information system, the improvement of policies and procedures and the adoption of the best practices of corporate planning and management.
The Chairman of UniLeasing, Khalid Askerov, said that the Company possesses leasing portfolio with large capital and covers nearly 17% of the leasing market in Azerbaijan.
UniLeasing was created in 2004 by UniBank, one of the leading private commercial banks in Azerbaijan in which the EBRD is also a share-holder. The Head of the EBRD Baku Office, Aygen Yayikoglu, said that presently the EBRD plays an important role in the banking market of Azerbaijan.
"We would like to expand operations in the leasing market of Azerbaijan. The leasing market of Azerbaijan future. It will be the first leasing project in Azerbaijan, in which the EBRD will participate. Over the next 3-4 years, the EBRD stands ready to support not only banking, but also leasing sector," he said.
