BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 12. The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) has earned more than $5 billion since investing in stock indices, a source in SOFAZ told Trend this week.
The source noted that as of March 31, 2024, the profit has amounted to $5.3 billion, or 226 percent.
"While investing in shares on the stock exchange, the fund replicates the MSCI World Index [Morgan Stanley Capital International World Index], which consists of the largest companies of the developed world, taking into account the weight of the companies included in this index. The MSCI World index, which is the predominant part of the SOFAZ share portfolio, consists of shares of 1,465 companies (the total market capitalization of which is about $70 trillion), covering 11 sectors of the economy in 23 developed countries of the world," the fund noted.
Key indicators and returns on SOFAZ's investments in listed equities in developed countries (as of March 31, 2024)
|
Invested funds |
$7.1 billion |
|
Profit |
$5.3 billion |
|
Current value |
$12.4 billion |
|
Yields from the moment of portfolio creation |
226 percent |
Furthermore, Tether has announced a new investment in "CityPay.io" to strengthen its presence in Eastern Europe.
Additionally, it was emphasized that Tether's financial support is crucial for CityPay.io's growth in key markets such as Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. The goal is to enter dynamic emerging markets where payment technologies and cryptocurrencies are becoming more popular.
This week, it was announced that Azerbaijan will establish a database of institutional investors, focusing on several key directions: supporting institutional investors, developing information mechanisms, and emphasizing transparency. Estimates place the potential of institutional investors at 2.5 billion manat ($1.47 billion).
Furthermore, Azerbaijan's plans were revealed to launch a program to accelerate the development of information and communication technologies, covering three main directions.
Firstly, the program involves creating an accelerator and collaborating with existing chambers of commerce and organizations to support startups and business initiatives.
Secondly, the focus is on attracting nominated companies, facilitating their growth and integration into corporate structures, and improving internal communications.
The third component of the program is providing ongoing support for large enterprises to leverage information technologies to enhance their market potential.
The program aims to significantly improve the financial performance of participating firms, with a projected increase in market capitalization of 500 million manat ($294 million).
Additionally, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved technical assistance of $1.7 million for the second phase of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation (CAREC) Sustainable Regional Development Strategy program until 2030. The implementation of technical assistance will span 31 months, starting in May 2024 and concluding in December 2026.
According to ADB, $1.5 million will be allocated on a grant basis from its Special Technical Assistance Fund ($800,000 from TASF 7 and $700,000 from other sources of TASF), and $225,000 will be allocated from the Regional Cooperation and Integration Fund (RCIF).
The project covers all participants of the CAREC program (Azerbaijan, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan), except Afghanistan.
Additionally, this week saw the opening of Kapital Bank's Lachin branch. With the opening of the new branch, the bank has made history as the first bank to start operating in Lachin, and the bank plans to open another branch in the city of Khankendi in the near future.
EIB Global, the arm of the European Investment Bank (EIB) for financing activities outside the European Union, has signed a 10 million euro loan agreement with Bank Respublika to support micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Azerbaijan.
This week, the Azerbaijani Investment Holding (AIH) and the World Bank discussed prospective projects.
During the Azerbaijan-Slovak Business Forum held in Baku this week, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Azerbaijani Investment Company (AIC) and the Export-Import Bank of Slovakia (Eximbank).
It was also reported that Moody's, an international rating agency, confirmed Kapital Bank's rating following its latest assessment.
The agency confirmed the bank's long-term deposit rating in national and foreign currency at Ba2, as well as the baseline credit assessment (BCA) rating at Ba3. The outlook for Kapital Bank's rating remains stable. The agency's report said that this indicator reflects the expected improvement in the bank's credit portfolio quality over the next 12–18 months.