BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 9. The potential of the banking sector of the Turkic states is estimated at trillions of dollars, Executive Director of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communications of Azerbaijan, Vusal Gasimli, saidat the International Finance and Banking Summit taking place in Baku, Trend's correspondent reports.
"The Turkic states possess significant untapped potential in the financial and banking sectors, which could become a key driver of the region's economic integration.
The combined GDP of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) countries exceeded $2.1 trillion, accounting for approximately 3% of the global economy. Meanwhile, average economic growth rates last year exceeded 6%, with individual countries demonstrating particularly strong growth: Kyrgyzstan over 11%, Uzbekistan over 7%, and Kazakhstan over 5%.
The total volume of banking assets in the region has approached $1.2 trillion, but their share of the global total is only approximately 0.8%. This indicates a significant gap between the region's economic weight and the level of development of its financial system.
Last year, savings in the Turkic world countries reached approximately $670 billion (2.3% of the global total). He estimates the gap between savings and assets is due to several factors: the outflow of some capital, underdeveloped domestic financial markets, and the accumulation of funds in sovereign wealth funds, including those of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
The goal is to retain more capital within the region and channel it toward the development of the Turkic countries," he emphasized.
Speaking specifically about the participating countries, Gasimli noted that Türkiye's banking sector is the most developed: assets exceed $1 trillion, their ratio to GDP reaches 95%, and capital adequacy is over 16%. The share of non-performing loans is approximately 2.6%.
He noted that in Kazakhstan, banking assets have reached $75 billion, while the sector is actively developing through the introduction of digital technologies.
“In Azerbaijan, the volume of banking assets has approached $35 billion, and the level of problem loans remains one of the lowest in the region - about 2%,” the analyst explained.
According to him, in Uzbekistan, the rapid growth of the banking sector and the transition from a centralized model to market mechanisms continues.
