Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 16
By Taleh Mursagulov - Trend:
There is a downward tendency for appeals to the bank ombudsman in Azerbaijan, the Secretary of the Banking Ombudsman Elchin Hasanov told Trend on Jan. 16.
In 2018 there were 344 appeals to the banking ombudsman and over 60 percent of them were not related to the activity spectrum of the ombudsman, he said.
"The remaining 40 percent of the complaints were considered and decisions were made on behalf of citizens and banks," Hasanov said.
The secretary also added that according to the statute of the bank ombudsman, the banking ombudsman only considers citizens' applications for loans that have been issued within the past two years.
"There are times when people contact us on issues of 2015-2016 (before the establishment of a banking ombudsman's services in Azerbaijan) and we, according to the regulations, cannot address these issues," Hasanov noted.
On the other hand, the majority of problem loans are being considered by courts and therefore it is impossible to apply to the banking ombudsman regarding them, he said.
Presently, the banking ombudsman is considering complaints up to $2,000.
The Banking Ombudsman in Azerbaijan started activities in September 2017. To date, 23 banks and one non-bank credit organization have agreements with the Banking Ombudsman of Azerbaijan.
The Banking Ombudsman in Azerbaijan is Ikram Karimov.
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