Tag Archives: IFI

China wants to build bank in Georgia

JULY 5 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — The Chinese holding company Hualing wants to build the third largest bank in Georgia by merging Basisbank, of which it owns 90%, and Bank Republic, which it is looking to buy. France’s Societe Generale owns a 93.6% stake in Bank Republic and the EBRD owns the rest. If the agreement with Hualing goes through, Societe Generale will own an 8% stake in the merged bank and the EBRD will own a 3.9%. In recent months,Hualing has also heavily invested in Georgia’s construction sector.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 288, published on July 8 2016)

Tajik banking crisis spreads

DUSHANBE, JULY 4 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — Tajikistan’s Central Bank said it had placed Tajprombank under its administration because it had nearly run out of cash and also that it had asked the EBRD to step in to advise it on how to support the country’s ailing banking sector.

A banking crisis in Tajikistan, triggered by a recession in Russia and a slowdown in domestic economic activity, has spread.

Tajik media reported that the Central Bank had asked the EBRD directly for technical support and advice to help it smooth out problems in its banking sector. The EBRD has already said it is looking at bailing out Tojiksodirotbank.

It has said that is is considering more support, although it us unclear if this is just advice or also funds.

So far Tojiksodirotbank and now Tajprombank have been placed under the Central Bank’s administration.

A source at the Tajik Central Bank said it had placed Tajprombank under its administration on May 3.

“This decision was taken because Tajprombank had repeatedly violated banking legislation and other regulatory acts laid out by the Central Bank, weakening its financial position and disappointing its creditors,” the source said.

It is unclear why it took the Central Bank two months to acknowledge this.

Agroinvestbank has also been looking increasingly shaky. Last month, customers said they were finding it difficult to withdraw cash from Agroinvestbank’s ATMs.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 288, published on July 8 2016)

Auchan opens hypermarket in Tajik capital, its first in Central Asia

DUSHANBE, JUNE 21 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — French hypermarket brand Auchan opened its first store in Tajikistan to local acclaim with crowds of residents thronging to the shop, which has been built on the side of a new shopping mall.

The hypermarket, one of 3,000 Auchan shops around the world and the first in Central Asia, was built by France’s Schiever Group.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) also invested 5m euros. According to the EBRD, Tajik people buy products from small shops and at high prices, and building a new hypermarket offers them a new alternative.

The opening of Auchan is also a boost for President Emomali Rakhmon who is under increasing pressure because of the country’s poor economic performance over the past few months.

The currency has dropped in value, inflation has risen and jobs have disappeared.

The four-storey Dushanbe Mall, home to the new Auchan store, has been built next to the headquarters of Tojiksodirotbank, one of the country’s biggest banks. This year, Tojiksodirotbank went into administration.

And Tajiks were excited at the prospect of shopping at the hypermarket. “Everything was good. Some products were cheaper than at street shops,” said Malika, 45.

Others were more skeptical.

“Many say that people do not have any money but look at how crowded this place has become,” said Sharif, a 38-years-old NGO worker.

“As time passes, though, less and less people will come.”

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 286, published on June 24 2016)

Uzbekistan to launch tunnel

JUNE 20 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The Uzbek government said it will launch the Angren-Pap railway service from July, opening the longest tunnel in Central Asia. The project, completed in the past few months, cost $1.6b and was partly funded by Chinese and World Bank loans. Uzbek President Islam Karimov and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping inaugurated the new tunnel during a ceremony in Tashkent.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 286, published on June 24 2016)

IMF approves loans for Kyrgyzstan and Armenia

JUNE 16/17 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The IMF approved two loans to Armenia and Kyrgyzstan, part of a three-year plan to support macroeconomic reforms. It loaned $22m to Armenia, where it supported a controversial tax reform that received a first parliamentary approval on June 15. The IMF also gave a $13m loan to Kyrgyzstan and lauded the government’s measures to boost tax revenues and cut spending.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 286, published on June 24 2016)

EBRD issues lari bond in Georgia

JUNE 17 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The EBRD said it issued a 107m lari ($50.2m) bond in Georgia, the second lari-denominated public bond issued by the bank. The five-year bond has an initial yield of 6.45% and will be listed on the Georgian Stock Exchange. The EBRD launched its first domestic bond in Georgia in March 2014. The value of the original two-year bond was 50m lari (around $30m at the time).

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 286, published on June 24 2016)

WB approves Kazakhstan road loan

JUNE 10 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – The World Bank approved a $978m loan to finance the construction of a road link across Kazakhstan, which will complete the transit corridor between Astana and the west of the country. The project will cost a total of $1b and will be partly funded by the government. The World Bank is also funding part of the Kazakh section of the Western Europe – Western China highway.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 285, published on June 17 2016)

Tajikistan’s TSB resumes transactions

JUNE 10 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) – Tojiksodirotbonk, Tajikistan’s second largest lender, said it resumed money transfer transactions, and that it continued to operate under the administration of the Central Bank. TSB, as it is commonly known, is awaiting confirmation from the EBRD for a funding lifeline of around $165m. The investment would give the EBRD a 25% stake in the bank.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 285, published on June 17 2016)

EBRD to issue bond to Azerbaijan’s economy

MAY 25 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — The EBRD is ready to issue a manat- denominated bond to help de-dollarise Azerbaijan’s economy, the Bank’s President, Sir Suma Chakra- barti, said. While the amount of the issue was not disclosed, Sir Suma said the bond will be sold within Azerbaijan to boost the local currency’s credibility.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 282, published on May 27 2016)

Uzbekistan receives loan from World Bank

MAY 25 2016 (The Conway Bulletin) — The World Bank sent a $20m loan to Uzbekistan to fund the update of the cadastre system, through which the government registers properties. Outdated registers and complicated bureaucratic procedures, as well as rampant corruption and a lack of legal protection for companies, have kept Uzbekistan among the worst countries to do business in.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 282, published on May 27 2016)