YEREVAN, September 6. /ARКА/. Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) CEO Andrei Belyaninov said in an interview with Reuters (https://www.reuters.com/article/edb-bonds/eurasian-development-bank-plans-bond-issues-eyes-bank-stakes-idUSL5N25W110) that the bank was looking to buy stakes in local banks in the countries where it operates – which include Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan in addition to the founding partners.
“We are working on an equity investment in Armenia, considering such a possibility in Belarus, and looking at a bank in Russia,” he said without naming any potential partners.
EDB, which has signed almost $900 million in financing deals this year, plans to exceed $1 billion in deals by the end of the year, and boost lending to $1.3 billion next year, Belyaninov said.
According to Belyaninov, today the bulk of the bank’s equity investments are in Russia, where it is experiencing a certain liquidity deficit in rubles, and where projects implementation is financed by local currencies.
The EDB is an international financial organization established by Russia and Kazakhstan in 2006 to promote the development of market economy of the member countries, help boost their economic growth and expansion of mutual trade and economic ties. The member states are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.
Armenia has been a full member of the Eurasian Development Bank since April 2009. As of September 1, 2019, EDB’s investment portfolio in Armenia stood at $208.5 million -0-
