On 10 February, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received a delegation led by President of the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) Dmitry Pankin in order to foster cooperation between Armenia and the BSTDB in the private sector, reported arka.am. Pashinyan stressed that there was huge cooperation potential in the fields of energy, tourism, agriculture and information technologies. 

Pankin stated that small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) have so far been the Bank’s main focus in Armenia, but they are going to implement infrastructure and energy-related projects in the near future. He said that last year BSTDB had adopted a new medium-term work strategy outlining two key aspects. The first is about focusing on faster growth, since the bank believes that it should play a more prominent role in the countries of the Black Sea basin, as the demand for loans, financing and investments is on the rise, and the bank has the ability to attract money from the market on good terms.

He said the second important aspect is about a greater focus on large infrastructure projects, including through partnerships between the state and the private sector. “We are participating in several projects in Armenia, for example, in construction of an airport and the modernization of the Zangezur copper and molybdenum plant with other financial institutions. So, we plan to look for new projects and actively participate in infrastructure projects,” added Pankin.

On the same day, the BSTDB provided a $10 million loan to the Armenian Economy Development Bank (Armeconombank) for the development of SME facilities. “Supporting the SME sector development is our strategic priority in Armenia and in the whole region. This is already a third SME facility that we provide to Armeconombank which will generate a positive impact on the private sector growth and employment in Armenia. More than 180 Armenian SME has already benefited from our two previous smaller facilities,” said Pankin. 

The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), an international financial institution with headquarters in Thessaloniki, Greece, was established by Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine. BSTDB started operations in June 1999 and has authorized capital of €3.45 billion. The Bank supports economic development and regional cooperation in the Black Sea Region through trade and project finance lending, guarantees, and equity participation in private enterprises and public entities in the member countries. The bank has invested in 37 projects in Armenia in a worth of €277 Million so far.