BAKU, Azerbaijan, Dec. 17
By Fakhri Vakilov-Trend:
Uzbekistan’s Ipoteka Bank signed loan agreements with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in the amount of 18 million euros, Trend reports citing Uzbek media.
Representatives of the EBRD, headed EBRD Head of Uzbekistan Alkis Vryenios Drakinos and members of the Board of JSIB Ipoteka Bank attended the signing ceremony.
Ipoteka Bank is one of the leading financial institutions and one of the four largest banks in Uzbekistan. Partnerships of Ipoteka Bank and EBRD began to form in 2004 when Ipoteka Bank received a credit line from the EBRD to finance small businesses.
Thanks to these credit lines, representatives of small businesses in Uzbekistan will gain greater access to the financing package provided by the EBRD to Ipoteka Bank. These funds will be offered to enterprises for investment, which will increase their competitiveness and sustainability. Today, 50-60 percent of GDP falls on small businesses and private entrepreneurship.
The ability to finance promising projects is one of the key requirements for the development of the real sector of the economy. This is the second Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises credit line provided to Ipoteka Bank in addition to the Trade Facilitation Program, under which the EBRD began cooperation in 2017.
Thanks to an extensive network of 620 branches throughout Uzbekistan, the Ipoteka Bank has the potential to provide the necessary financing for micro and small enterprises in Uzbekistan, especially enterprises in regions outside the capital, which, in turn, will also allow the bank to significantly increase the customer base.
Fundamental changes in Uzbekistan in recent years have allowed EBRD to significantly increase investments in the development of the country's economy. Last year alone, the Bank invested nearly 400 million euros in the country, and the development of the private sector is one of the priorities. The efforts were rewarded with strong growth, according to the latest forecasts of the EBRD, an increase in GDP by 5.8 percent is expected in 2020.
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