Discussion on the Strategic Roadmap for Development of Financial Services

The Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication hosted the discussion on the Strategic Roadmap for Development of Financial Services in the Republic of Azerbaijan.  During the discussions, the following issues were analyzed: the status of the implementation of planned and ongoing measures, the difficulties encountered in this process, as well as the possibility of accelerating the implementation of tasks.

Vusal Gasimli, the Executive Director of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication, noted that for achieving goals set by 2020, mentioned that it is planned to implement measures on 6 strategic targets and 16 strategic priorities.

The targets include measures in the areas of restructuring and capitalization of banks, improving assets, developing the insurance market, enhancing financial inclusion, developing capital and the money market, creating favorable conditions for market participants, developing credit information exchange systems, and creating working mechanisms for ensuring provision of rights of lenders, standardizing court decisions and improving procedural arrangements, and other.

V. Gasimli mentioned successful and timely achievement of the tasks set. As a result of economic reforms carried out by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, indicators of financial stability of banking systems have increased. Thus, the total capital adequacy ratio increased by almost three times compared to the end of 2016.

Decree of the President of the Azerbaijan Republic "On additional measures related to the solution of problem loans of individuals in the Republic of Azerbaijan".

On the other hand, the Decree "On additional measures related to the solution of problem loans of individuals in the Republic of Azerbaijan» created the conditions for increasing activity in the banking sector and laid a solid foundation for a substantial reduction in the portfolio of non-performing loans. As a result of the implemented measures and reforms in the post-crisis period, a record 4% decrease in non-performing loans was achieved.

According to statistics, for the last 3 years in the country, the special weight of manat in relation to foreign currency increased 2.5 times in deposits of individuals, and the process of de-dollarization intensified.