BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 29. Central Bank is
not only responsible for overseeing the banking sector but is also
interested in developing other areas of the financial sector, the
governor of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) Taleh Kazimov
said, Trend's
correspondent reports from the event.
He made the remarks at a press conference on Thursday following
a meeting on the parameters of the interest rate corridor.
According to him, the banking sector accounts for 94–95% of
Azerbaijan’s financial sector.
“The Central Bank is responsible not only for the banking sector
but is also interested in developing other underdeveloped areas of
the financial sector. There is considerable potential in areas such
as insurance, capital markets and fintech,” Kazimov said.
He noted that the dominant position of banks in Azerbaijan’s
financial sector is largely due to historical factors.
“Historically, the banking sector has been the leading segment
of the financial sector. As we have noted, banks account for 94–95%
of the financial sector today,” he said.
Kazimov added that the development of a bank-based financial
sector in Azerbaijan differs from the situation in some other
countries.
“Many countries have bank-based financial sectors. For example,
the United States has a capital market-based financial system,
where capital markets account for a larger share than the banking
sector. In our case, the opposite is true. The situation is similar
in other neighboring countries,” the CBA governor said.
He noted that there is considerable potential for developing
individual segments of Azerbaijan’s financial sector, and that the
key priority is to create the right conditions to realize it.
“We see potential in every segment, and that potential is
substantial. As the regulator, we believe we need to create the
conditions for it to be realized. Our strategy should focus on
creating these conditions, while market participants should use
them to develop their respective sectors,” Kazimov added.
