YEREVAN, November 10. /ARKA/. New appointments at Unibank ojsc are aimed at its further development and the strengthening of its positions in the financial market, said Gagik Zakaryan, Unibank Council Chairman.

By a November 6, 2017 decision of the Council, Mesrop Hakobyan was appointed Unibank Management Board Chairman. He previously served as Deputy Management Board Chairman and Operations and Information Systems Director.

Vardan Atayan, who served until now as Management Board Chairman, accepted the Council's proposal to work as adviser to the Council Chairman and oversee issues of strategic importance. His candidacy as Deputy Council Chairman will be presented for approval to the annual meeting of the bank's shareholders.

According to Gagik Zakaryan, the relocation of Vardan Atayan to the Council will allow him to concentrate on the implementation of strategic tasks and work towards increasing the efficiency and profitability of the bank.

"During his 16-year tenure as Management Board Chairman, a tremendous work has been done - we have managed to build an effective management system having achieved impressive results both in retail and corporate businesses," he was quoted as saying in a Unibank’s news release.

He recalled that Unibank was the first bank in Armenia to have conducted an IPO and getting listed at NASDAQ OMX Armenia stock exchange, and paid dividends to shareholders at an annual yield of 12.9%.

"I am sure that due to active cooperation with Vartan Atayan in the Council and Mesrop Hakobyan in the position of Management Board Chairman, Unibank will continue increasing its volumes and realize ambitious tasks," he said.

Mesrop Hakobyan has been holding leading positions at Unibank since 2004. His has more than 15 years of work experience in the banking sector. His responsibilities included management of the branch network and information systems, the bank's operational activities, payment cards and the modern technologies.

Gagik Zakaryan stressed that the Council of the Bank adheres to the principles of continuity in the management of the bank and seeks to create all conditions for the promotion of young professionals ready to take on more responsibility.

"When making this appointment we took into account Mesrop Hakobyan's work experience, his effectiveness and business qualities. This decision was also made based on the bank's further strategy aimed at increasing the bank's technological equipment and introducing innovative solutions," Zakaryan summed up.

In the third quarter of 2017, Unibank demonstrated positive financial results in all major areas and continued to grow its profits. The bank's assets exceeded 189 billion drams, and liabilities - 153.5 billion drams. The total capital of the bank stood at 35.4 billion drams.

In September 2017, the international rating agency Moody's Investors Service approved the rating of Unibank at B2; the outlook is stable.

Unibank was founded in October 2001. In 2002, the bank introduced the Unistream system. The main shareholder of the bank is UNIHOLDING GG LIMITED. In 2015 the bank was reorganized into an open joint-stock company. -0-