Financial Services Working Group

On September 19, 2024, a joint meeting of AHK Azerbaijan’s Financial Services and Agriculture & Food Industry Working Groups was held at the AHK Azerbaijan office. The main topic of the meeting was “Raising Capital through Securities.” The event was opened by Mr Ilgar Aliyev, Vice-Chairperson of the Agriculture & Food Industry Working Group, who welcomed the participants and provided information about the meeting’s agenda and topic.

The guest speaker at the meeting was Ms Anjela Ramazanova, Head of the Listing Department at the Baku Stock Exchange (BSE). After greeting the participants, she gave a comprehensive overview of the history, structure, and activities of the BSE. Ms Ramazanova also spoke about the recent rebranding process at the BSE and its new strategic plan. More

On September 17, 2024, the Financial Services Working Group of AHK Azerbaijan convened at its office to discuss "Green Financing and the Transition to a Green Economy." This meeting was part of AHK Azerbaijan’s broader series of initiatives under the motto "Innovate, Collaborate, Transform - Expectations for COP29," which aims to support green development.

The meeting was opened by Mr Ilkin Guliyev, Chairman of the Financial Services Working Group, who greeted the participants and outlined the course and topic of the discussion. He also provided a brief overview of the previous meeting. Mr Guliyev emphasised the relevance of green financing, noting the significant role of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in promoting this trend.

Mr Elmin Ibrahimov, Principal Banker at EBRD, served as the guest speaker. He began by providing an overview of EBRD’s activities in Azerbaijan, with a focus on the organisation’s key areas: Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, and Sustainable Infrastructure. Mr Ibrahimov then introduced the EBRD's green financial products, including Green Bonds, Green Loans, Sustainability-Linked Bonds, and Sustainability-Linked Loans, detailing how each product operates under specific principles of green finance. More

At the next meeting of the Financial Services Working Group of AHK Azerbaijan held on March 13, 2024, at the Head Office of AccessBank CJSC, the areas of activity of the Entrepreneurship Development Fund and preferential financial mechanisms were discussed, as well as the banking services and products available for AHK Azerbaijan members within the framework of cooperation with EDF. At the meeting participated Tobias Baumann, Executive Board Member of AHK Azerbaijan, Ilkin Guliyev, Member of the Board of AccessBank CJSC and Chairman of the Financial Services Working Group, as the moderator of the meeting. Guest speakers included Osman Khaliyev, Chairman of the Management Board of the Entrepreneurship Development Fund, and Javid Aliyev, Director of small, medium, and corporate clients at AccessBank CJSC.

Declaring the meeting open, Tobias Baumann welcomed the participants and informed them about the progress of the meeting. Later, the moderator of the meeting, Mr Guliyev, greeted the participants and gave the audience extensive information about the bank's activities. Then he gave the floor to Mr Khaliyev. More

On 20 June 2023, the next meeting of the Financial Services Working Group took place with the participation of more than 20 company representatives. The meeting revolved around the current law and regulations with regard to financial technologies (fintech) in Azerbaijan.

We were joined by the representatives of BHM Law Firm LLC, Ms Gulnar Gurbanova and Ms Turkan Hajiyeva, who gave valuable insights into the regulatory framework for fintech in Azerbaijan and explored potential areas for improvement and development.

The meeting continued with a Q&A session with the participation of Mr Farid Osmanov, Executive Director of the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan, moderated by Mr Afgan Bakhishov, Chairperson of the AHK Azerbaijan Financial Services Working Group. More

On 05 July 2022, the next meeting of the Financial Services Working Group took place with the participation of more than 20 company representatives. The meeting revolved around the key topics concerning the financial sector in Azerbaijan, aiming to set an annual agenda for the second half of 2022.

Opening the meeting, Tobias Baumann welcomed the participants, introduced Ramin Huseynov, new Chairperson of the Financial Services Working Group, and added that the impact of the current political situation on the financial markets was not fully clear. Logistics companies are particularly hard hit by the sanctions and looking for new transportation corridors. Ramin Huseynov, in his speech, talked about the recent activities and the topics covered by the Financial Services Working Group and went through the crucial topics that stand out in the financial sector.

The meeting continued with a session on gathering ideas from the participants, which Ramin Huseynov moderated. During the meeting, it was agreed that the Financial Services Working Group would focus on addressing key challenges in financial and operational leasing, capital markets, securities, and macroeconomic trends. More

On 19 April 2022, the next online meeting of the Financial Services Working Group took place with the participation of more than 40 company representatives. The meeting was focused on the economic impacts of the pandemic and emerging risks for recovery.

After the opening remarks by Tobias Baumann, Evgenia Gashikulina welcomed the participants and the guest speaker - Werner Claes, Member of the Supervisory Board of AccessBank, and noted that he was a professional with over 20 years of extensive experience in the banking sector, particularly in the fields of risk management, modeling, and operational efficiency.

In his presentation, Werner Claes shared his views from a more global and holistic perspective, talking about the tools that can help businesses deal with crisis situations. He expanded on these issues, touching upon several topics related to economic impact and interconnectivity, means to fight the crises in international markets, climate themes, and managing under extreme uncertainty.

The meeting was moderated by Evgenia Gashikulina and the presentation by the guest speaker was followed by an engaging question and answer session. More

On 27 January 2022, the next online meeting of the Financial Services Working Group took place with participation of more than 40 company representatives. The meeting was focused on the digitalisation strategy for the finance and banking sector.

Opening the meeting, Evgenia Gashikulina welcomed the participants and the guest speaker - Farid Osmanov, Executive Director of the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan and recalled the short survey carried out among the members of the working group last year. One of the popular topics that stood out was the future roadmap for digitalisation.

In his presentation, Farid Osmanov shared the strategic incentives of the Central Bank for the near future touching upon the main challenges in the fields of regulatory framework, financial market development, financial inclusion and digitalisation. He further explained the Digital Payment Strategy of the Central Bank for 2021-2023, which aims to establish competitive, innovative and affordable payment ecosystem.

The meeting was moderated by Evgenia Gashikulina and the presentation by the guest speaker was followed by an engaging question and answer session. More

On 03 February 2021, the next online meeting of the Financial Services Working Group took place with participation of more than 20 company representatives. The meeting was focused on identifying and managing risks in the banking and financial sector in Azerbaijan.

Opening the meeting, Evgenia Gashikulina noted a number of positive economic signs in the country despite some large remaining uncertainties in the international and domestic markets. The session was moderated by Evgenia Gashikulina and we were joined by two guest speakers - Afgan Bakhishov, Executive Director on Legal and Compliance and Fuad Rustamov, Head of the Underwriting Department from the AccessBank CJSC who shared their observation on financial and legal risks when analysing the companies in the market.

The online event was interactive and after the presentations, the guest speakers answered questions raised by the participants. More