YEREVAN, August 26. /ARKA/. On Thursday, International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Armenian Inecobank signed agreement on trade funding in the amount of $2 million.

The agreement is targeted at the expansion of trade funding for small and medium-sized business of Armenia and will give Inecobank opportunity to provide improved services to its clients dealing with export and import.

“Trade is a milestone of economic development. We are happy that we enter a new phase of cooperation with Inecobank through trade funding”, said General Director and Executive Vice-President of IFC Lars Thunell during signing the agreement.

This agreement will be beneficial not only for the bank but also the clients.

According to the agreement, IFC will provide guarantees for making certain trade transactions through the “Program of World Trade Funding”.

IFC cooperates with Inecobank since 2006. Thunell said that in the beginning of this year IFC assisted the bank in the issue of expansion of opportunities in providing more than 71 thousand new micro-credits to individuals and small enterprises for three years.

Executive Director of “Inecobank” Avetis Baloyan said that this program will help to expand the activity of the bank in trade funding through providing the clients with competitive terms.

“We suggest guarantees, factoring, trade funding credits and other instruments. Starting from 2010 we will also fund deliveries”, he said.

Armenia became the member of IFC which is within the WB group, from 1995. As of June 30, 2010 annual volume of investments of IFC in Armenia was increased making $35.5 million. Till now IMF had invested $87 million in the frames of 18 programs in different spheres in Armenia.

CJSC “Inecobank” was registered on February 7, 1996. From December 1997 the Bank started to fund the trade in Armenia. Shareholders of the Bank are Avetis Baloyan with share of 37.1%, Karen Safaryan – 33.2%, member of banking group KfW, the company DEG (Deutsche Investititions-und Entwicklunsgesellschaft mbH) – 13.5%, IFC - 10%.  --0--