BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. The two-day IX International Banking Forum has begun in Baku, Trend reports.
The event was held under the motto “Reliable, Secure, and Sustainable Banking.”
The forum was devoted to discussing current trends in areas such as the cashless economy, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, open banking, capital markets, and new payment ecosystems.
The event was attended by representatives of government agencies, banking and financial institutions, the fintech ecosystem, international organizations, and leading companies.
Speaking at the forum, Vusal Khalilov, Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA), said that the AzQr standard is in the process of being approved.
According to him, this standard will simplify the acceptance of cashless payments both in the regions and in the center: "At the same time, the cost of payments will decrease.
Overall, this transition is aimed at significantly reducing costs not only for financial institutions but also for entrepreneurs.
The Central Bank is improving its control mechanisms, taking these changes and dynamics into account. According to our strategy, this is a transition to risk-based control. To implement this transition, we are introducing several technological solutions and striving to ensure their application by financial institutions," V. Khalilov emphasized.
Vusal Gasimli, Executive Director of the Center for Economic Reform and Communication Analysis (CERACC), said that Azerbaijan has great potential for further acceleration of economic growth.
According to him, the existence of a production deficit at the macro level indicates opportunities for accelerating economic growth in the country:
“This is the main indicator confirming the possibility of more dynamic economic growth.”
In his opinion, investment is the main driver of economic growth. In this context, work is underway on a socio-economic development strategy for 2027–2030, which provides for capital investments of more than 10 billion manats.
At the same time, investments of 13.2 billion manats are planned as part of the “Great Return” program for 2027-2030.
Gasimli added that major projects are also planned for the coming years. One of them is a project to clean and desalinate water from the Caspian Sea, which will cost more than 400 million manats. In addition, an investment package of 5-10 billion manats is being discussed for the implementation of water resources and transport strategies for 2027-2030.
Furthermore, Alpasan Çakar, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Turkish Banks Association, emphasized that artificial intelligence and data will form the basis of the future banking system.
According to him, strategic and customer expectations in the banking sector are changing rapidly: "Although banking is essentially an intermediary activity, technological developments are taking this sector to a whole new level. Although banking was originally based on the classic corporate model, the spread of computers in the 1970s and 1980s and digitalization in the 2000s created new mechanisms in the sector. Digital transformation is now entering a new phase. The main thing is to correctly understand customer behavior and expectations and manage them. Customers no longer want to go to the bank. Their needs must be analyzed in advance, and the service must be organically integrated into their usual flow of life," he said.
The chairman also touched on global experience and noted that in some countries, a significant portion of financial services is already provided through non-bank platforms, and this trend is growing.ъ
According to him, strategic and customer expectations in the banking sector are changing rapidly: "Although banking is essentially an intermediary activity, technological developments are taking this sector to a whole new level. Although banking was originally based on the classic corporate model, the spread of computers in the 1970s and 1980s and digitalization in the 2000s created new mechanisms in the sector. Digital transformation is now entering a new phase. The main thing is to correctly understand customer behavior and expectations and manage them. Customers no longer want to go to the bank. Their needs must be analyzed in advance, and the service must be organically integrated into their usual flow of life," he said.
The chairman also touched on global experience and noted that in some countries, a significant portion of financial services is already provided through non-bank platforms, and this trend is growing.
“Today's meeting was not only a moment of transfer of chairmanship, but also an opportunity to reaffirm our common commitment to the goals and unity guided by the spirit of brotherhood, solidarity, and common Turkic values,” Chakipov said.
He added that the efforts of the Red Crescent and Red Cross societies of the TCO member states had been combined, and the adoption of a new declaration with the participation of TCO Secretary General Kurbanichbek Omuraliev was an important step towards the further development of the network.
Chingiz Chakipov assured that Kyrgyzstan would continue to support all joint initiatives and contribute to improving the effectiveness of collective humanitarian efforts.
