DUSHANBE, July 9, 2009, Asia-Plus — Today, four international financial organizations have signed the founding documents for the new AccessBank Tajikistan, according to the Dushanbe resident Office of the European bank for Reconstruction and Development (ERBD).
The new bank will be a resident bank under Tajik law and be supervised by the National Bank of Tajikistan. Its initial capital will be 48 million somoni.
The ceremony, which was held in EBRD’s Dushanbe Resident Office, was attended by members of President’s Executive Office, the Ministry of Finance and the National Bank of Tajikistan, who welcomed the initiative by the four founders. It was outlined that the foundation of a specialized bank for low and medium income layers of the population is in harmony with the strategy of the government of Tajikistan to alleviate poverty and help develop the private sector.
AccessMicrofinance Holding AG of Germany will hold a 52 % share, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) will hold 18% each and the German Development Bank KfW will hold 12%.
The bank will be managed by an experienced international management team. However, the lion share of staff will be Tajik citizens. Management will soon start selection procedures for staff in all banking departments, mainly young people with a university degree in economics, banking or finance. However, candidates will be selected exclusively based on real knowledge and motivation and suitable candidates without university degree or university degree in other areas can apply to us as well. AccessBank will then provide specific training for the new staff.
The four international financial institutions informed that recently approved legislations on banking and company registration have improved conditions for this foreign direct investment significantly and the future CEO of AccessBank, Christoph Ziegler of Germany, expects that the registration and licensing process will move smoothly and the bank can start operations by autumn 2009.
AccessBank will promote the development of the private sector and the low and medium income population of Tajikistan. It will initially offer micro-loans, agribusiness loans, and money transfer services. The bank will later diversify its portfolio with new products, including small loans, savings and deposit products and credit cards.
To facilitate the access to finance for entrepreneurs in rural areas, AccessBank will develop a strong regional presence in Tajikistan. It plans to open 17 branches outside of the capital, Dushanbe. Grant funds from governments of Austria, Germany, Japan and Luxemburg will be used to provide technical assistance to AccessBank for regional expansion and the optimal development of products suitable for the Tajik population.
“We hope that we will have a significant impact on the development of the private economy and the living standard of the industrious people of Tajikistan” says Christoph Ziegler, the future CEO of AccessBank Tajikistan.
