Ameriabank intends to invest in foreign issuers’ securities

YEREVAN, February 1. /ARKA/. Ameriabank intends to make investments in non-government securities of American and Russian issuers, Artak Hanesyan, director general of Ameriabank CJSC, said Tuesday at a press conference.

“We plan to enter the world market and invest in indices and corporate securities of foreign issuers on American and Russian markets,” he said. “Investments will be small, and 5% of the investment program will target these goals.”

Ameriabank has repeatedly come up with an initiative of issuing currency bonds for non-resident investors, and the matter has been discussed with the Central Bank of Armenia.

Hanesyan said that technical aspects of the proposal are under discussion now.

“I think we’ll manage to implement such a program in coming one or two years, and it will become permitted in Armenia to issue corporate currency bonds.”

The Ameriabank CJSC (former Armimpexbank) was founded in July 1992 using the facilities of the Armenian branch of the USSR Vnesheconombank (Foreign Economy Bank). On September 8, 1992, the bank received a banking license from the Central Bank of Armenia. 

In August 2007, TDA Holdings limited, affiliated with Troika Dialogue, Russia’s leading investment company, purchased the bank’s shares.

According to ARKA News Agency’s data, Ameriabank’s assets totaled AMD 103.5 billion and liabilities AMD 81.8 billion by late December 2009.

The bank’s total capital amounted to AMD 21.7 billion (the best result in Armenian banking system) and authorized capital AMD 180.2 billion (the best result in Armenian banking system) in 2009.

The bank’s 2009 credit portfolio amounted to AMD 54.1 billion, liabilities to clients AMD 69.1 billion and net profit AMD 1.5 billion. ($1 = AMD 377.83). M.V.-0---