FEB. 17 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) — The World Bank agreed a $195m loan to Uzbekistan for a railway project that will speed up trade with China, media reported. The $1.6b project in the eastern Ferghana Valley will also bypass a Soviet-built section of railway that passes through Tajikistan.
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(News report from Issue No. 219, published on Feb. 18 2015)
FEB. 10 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has agreed to hold its AGM in Tbilisi in 2015. This will be the EBRD’s 24th AGM and the first to be held in the South Caucasus. For Georgia, the EBRD’s AGM gives it an opportunity to showcase Tbilisi.
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(News report from Issue No. 218, published on Feb. 11 2015)
FEB. 10 2015 (The Conway Bulletin) — In a boost for business in Tajikistan, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has agreed a $5m loan to AccessBank which specialises in lending to smaller companies, media reported. AccessBank was set up in 2010 by international lenders.
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(News report from Issue No. 218, published on Feb. 11 2015)
DEC. 9 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kazakhstan unveiled a project to build a six-lane 66km ring-road around Almaty which they hope will both ease congestion in the city and provide a new financing model for major infrastructure projects.
The FT reported that the number of cars in Almaty has exploded by 50% in the last five years. Anybody walking around its choked-up streets at rush hour will be able to taste the exhaust fumes in the air.
With support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Kazakhstan has launched a plan to raise $680m in what has been dubbed its first internationally-tendered public-private partnership scheme.
Importantly, as the EBRD’s infrastructure chief, Thomas Meier, said the project is a test of Kazakhstan’s attractiveness and in particular law changes made this year. Most important of these was that any disputes concerning infrastructure developments would be settled by international arbitration.
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(News report from Issue No. 212, published on Dec. 10 2014)
NOV. 26 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Kyrgyzstan has invited companies to compete in a tender to build two hydropower stations, hydroworld.com, the industry new website, reported. The projects, supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), highlight how important hydropower is to Kyrgyzstan.
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(News report from Issue No. 211, published on Dec. 3 2014)
NOV. 3 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Islamic Development Bank has agreed to loan Uzbekistan $100m to build extra rural housing, media reported. This is the second major loan by intergovernmental agencies for rural housing in Uzbekistan. In 2011, the Asian Development Bank approved a loan of $500m.
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(News report from Issue No. 207, published on Nov. 5 2014)
SEPT. 24 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) sold its 5% stake in Bank of Georgia.
The sale ends the EBRD’s mission to support Bank of Georgia after the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. It took control of the stake in 2012 after a financial aid package put together in December 2008 was converted into shares.
“The EBRD’s role in supporting Bank of Georgia in the aftermath of the 2008 crisis is now complete,” Reuters quoted Nick Tesseyman, the EBRD MD, as saying.
“The EBRD will continue to provide debt financing to Bank of Georgia going forward as part of our continued support to the Georgian financial sector.”
The Bank of Georgia is publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange.
In many ways the sale of the EBRD’s 5% stake in Bank of Georgia is a success for Georgia as a country. The EBRD would not have sold its stake if it didn’t think that the bank was stable enough and if there wasn’t enough investor interest in Georgia and its finance industry.
Bank of Georgia CEO Irakli Gilauri acknowledged this.
“This transaction illustrates the depth of support for the bank from international investors and signals increasing investor interest in Georgia’s capital market,” he said.
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(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 29 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has agreed to lend Kazakhstan’s railway company $165m as part of its upgrade plan, media reported. This is important because it shows that Kazakhstan continues to attract investment despite declining economic growth rate predictions.
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(News report from Issue No. 202, published on Oct. 1 2014)
SEPT. 19 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The World Bank has offered to lend Kyrgyzstan $25m to help improve energy infrastructure ahead of the winter, media reported. Kyrgyzstan is facing a potential energy crisis this winter with water levels in its dams at a low. Energy shortages trigger frustration which bubbles over into public anger.
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(News report from Issue No. 201, published on Sept. 24 2014)
JULY 25 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijani finance looks in good shape.
At a local finance level, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has handed a $42m loan to Demirbank earmarked to help smaller businesses raise funds.
At an international level, Citi Group said it is now selling more Azerbaijani debt than at any time since 2008.
Both pieces of news are good general indicators for the Azerbaijani economy. Most analysts agree that the economy is in pretty good shape although domestic consumer lending needs to be tapered.
Bloomberg quoted Citi Group as saying that it had debuted nearly $15m of debt for Kapital Bank having issued $38.5m of debt for the International Bank of Azerbaijan earlier this year.
“Investors are seeking risk in emerging markets as central bank stimulus measures suppress returns on debt issued by companies in developed nations,” Bloomberg wrote.
Even so, the yield on the Azerbaijani bank debt is high at nearly 9%, reflecting the risk involved.
The Demirbank deal is more the culmination of a long term project by the EBRD to improve access to finance for smaller businesses in Azerbaijan. In April AccessBank, another Azerbaijani bank, secured a $60m loan from 16 lenders also for micro-finance.
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(News report from Issue No. 193, published on July 30 2014)