DUSHANBE January 17, Asia-Plus — As of January 1, 2007, a total capital of AmonatBonk, Tajikistan’s savings bank, has reached 23 million somonis (equivalent to some $7 million), Gulnoza Hasanova, deputy head of Tajik savings bank, announced at a news conference in Dushanbe on January 16.
According to her, the bank’s total capital in early 2006 amounted to 17.2 million somonis and by the end of last year it had increased by 37 percent. “This year, we plan to have increased the total capital to 30 million somonis,” Hasanova said.
The AmonatBonk official noted that the bank plans would have become associative member of one of payment systems this year. “Most likely it will be Visa International,” said Hasanova, “We also plan to launch a credit card system in the near future.”
“Today, Tajikistan has needs in mortgage crediting, and AmonatBonk as bank providing savings products to all strata of the population will be one of the first to offer its clients this service,” the savings bank official stressed.
Hasanova also said that last year, savings deposits of the population increased almost by 84 percent and have amounted, as of January 1, 2007, to 34.2 million somonis.
As far as money transfer transactions are concerned, $95.8 million remitted via the AmonatBonk system last year, which 2.3 times more than in 2005, according to Hasanova.
AmonatBonk currently makes money transfer transactions via Western Union, InterExtpress, UNIStream, Angelic, Contact, Migom, VIP Money Transfer (VMT), Strana Express and Bystraya Pochta money transfer systems.
Tajik Savings Bank was established in 1925 as a bank to provide easily accessible savings deposits to all strata of the population. In November 1998, the Savings Bank was renamed and registered AmonatBonk. Headquartered in Dushanbe, AmonatBonk has five regional, 69 district and city branches, as well as 499 agencies across the country.
