How do you feel in a new country and in a new position - as Chairman of the Board of AccessBank?
I have repeatedly visited Azerbaijan on short-term business trips. But coming here for a long time is both a privilege and a great responsibility. The AccessBank team I joined is made up of professionals. Our employees are constantly working on them, improving their skills. AccessBank has long been a source of funding for micro-businesses, and it plays a very important role in the economic development of the whole country. As you know, AccessBank has been operating in the Azerbaijani market for more than 20 years. The corporate culture established in our bank over the years has instilled in our employees a sense of responsibility to support micro-entrepreneurship, and I am confident that this sense of responsibility will help us achieve excellent results in the next 20 years.
The world economy has gone through a difficult period due to the limitations of the coronavirus pandemic. How do you see the role of financial institutions in restoring economic activity?
The last two years have been really difficult. I could not even imagine the scale of the pandemic and its impact on people's lives and various areas. Nevertheless, we have proved that we are quite resilient and have been able to cope with the daily challenges and limitations created by the pandemic.
Financial institutions in our region have played a major role in supporting entrepreneurship during the pandemic and in boosting economic development after the pandemic. In order to make financial resources accessible to our customers and the public, AccessBank, along with other banks in the country, continued to operate even during a period of complete closure. In addition, the bank's concessions on loan payments played an important role in the recovery of the economy. We continue to work closely with our customers, who have been most affected by the pandemic, because they still need time for a full recovery.
AccessBank has been maintaining its leading position in the microfinance market of Azerbaijan for many years. How do you see the current state of the bank and its steps for the near future?
Yes, AccessBank is a leader in microfinance in Azerbaijan, and I believe that the "recipe" for our leadership is our educated and talented team, which has been working in the micro, small and medium business (SME) segment for many years and knows it very well. In addition, it should be noted that all shareholders of AccessBank are international financial institutions that actively support the development of the MFI segment - the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the European Investment Bank (EIB), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), etc. We have also won the trust of the customers of the retail segment who place in our bank.
I see great growth prospects for AccessBank in the recent end of the pandemic and the consequent acceleration of economic growth. First of all, by supporting entrepreneurs in Absheron and the regions, we intend to develop in the segment of microfinance, which is "native" to us. I sincerely believe that no one knows this segment better than us.
At the same time, we intend to develop our customer base in the field of retail banking. In addition, our plans for the near future include improving the digital environment, which has benefited both us and our customers in recent years. These steps will allow us to serve existing customers faster, as well as attract new customers, especially the younger generation.
How do you see your professional contribution to the future development of the banking sector in Azerbaijan? What are your expectations from the new appointment?
As for the expectations ... I believe that the banking sector in Azerbaijan will further increase its contribution to the country's economy. Currently, the level of access to banking services in Azerbaijan is lower than in some countries in the region. However, I am confident that in the near future, as a result of joint cooperation of all stakeholders, as well as regulatory authorities and financial institutions, more citizens will use banking in Azerbaijan. This will be useful for everyone.
Source: AccessBank
