Armenian office of Latvian Rietumu banka willing to finance up to $10 million worth projects
28.11.2011,
22:01
The Armenian office of Latvian Rietumu Bank is ready to finance projects here with budgets up to $10 million, Arkady Sukharenko, deputy board chairman of the bank, said in an exclusive interview with ARKA news agency. He said the bank’s capital now stands
YEREVAN, November 28. /ARKA/. The Armenian office of Latvian Rietumu Bank is ready to finance projects here with budgets up to $10 million, Arkady Sukharenko, deputy board chairman of the bank, said in an exclusive interview with ARKA news agency. He said the bank’s capital now stands at $300 million and its assets are a little over $3 billion.
According to Sukharenko, the Armenian office of the bank is interested in credit and investment activity ‘since it is a corporate bank being engaged in servicing only medium-sized and large businesses.’
"We would like to cooperate with local companies in trade financing and establish contacts with customers working in international business," he said, adding that the bank will enter the local market gradually and depending on the attractiveness of projects may increase the amount of investments. He said Rietumu Banka is able to syndicate loans for large size projects."We do not seek to make $100 or $200 million investments in Armenia. Our task is to find interesting projects and finance them. If it requires $50 million, we will finance it, if it requires $100 million, we will also finance it," he explained.
Sukharenko said the local office of the bank has not yet made concrete arrangements with Armenian partners because it was involved largely in organizational and technical issues.
"We are holding first meetings here, and I would not like to talk about a partnership, but I think that we will visit all the banks here," he said.
He said the beginning of real work of the Armenian branch of Rietumu Banka will depend on how successful it is in advertising and presenting its capacities to the Armenian business people. He stressed that the bank emphasizes such factors as customer decency, legislation and treatment of foreign investors.
Rietumu Banka is one of the first private banks in Latvia operating since 1992). It is also one of the largest banks in the Baltic States. The Bank is active in international markets and offers a full range of financial services to clients in the Baltics as well through its representative offices in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Romania and France. In 2010 it earned 4.6 million euros in profits. Its capital adequacy ratio was 17.82% and liquidity ratio -58.13%. -0-
According to Sukharenko, the Armenian office of the bank is interested in credit and investment activity ‘since it is a corporate bank being engaged in servicing only medium-sized and large businesses.’
"We would like to cooperate with local companies in trade financing and establish contacts with customers working in international business," he said, adding that the bank will enter the local market gradually and depending on the attractiveness of projects may increase the amount of investments. He said Rietumu Banka is able to syndicate loans for large size projects."We do not seek to make $100 or $200 million investments in Armenia. Our task is to find interesting projects and finance them. If it requires $50 million, we will finance it, if it requires $100 million, we will also finance it," he explained.
Sukharenko said the local office of the bank has not yet made concrete arrangements with Armenian partners because it was involved largely in organizational and technical issues.
"We are holding first meetings here, and I would not like to talk about a partnership, but I think that we will visit all the banks here," he said.
He said the beginning of real work of the Armenian branch of Rietumu Banka will depend on how successful it is in advertising and presenting its capacities to the Armenian business people. He stressed that the bank emphasizes such factors as customer decency, legislation and treatment of foreign investors.
Rietumu Banka is one of the first private banks in Latvia operating since 1992). It is also one of the largest banks in the Baltic States. The Bank is active in international markets and offers a full range of financial services to clients in the Baltics as well through its representative offices in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Romania and France. In 2010 it earned 4.6 million euros in profits. Its capital adequacy ratio was 17.82% and liquidity ratio -58.13%. -0-
