ArmInfo. Acba-Credit Agricole Bank presented sme.acba.am website to around 200 enterprise representatives from various spheres of economy. The website is aimed at becoming a free platform for online business management and development and being accessible for everyone. It was brought out as a result of the broad cooperation with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), member of World Bank group. The sme.acba.am will be launched in December, the website of the bank informs.
According to the source the beginners and currently active businessmen have an opportunity to download learning materials and videos via the online platform, use a number of business tools and various financial calculators. It is also intended to become a unique platform of cooperation for SME representatives opening great opportunities of mutually beneficial cooperation for them.
"We have always been a socially responsible bank. This is the reason we want to have constantly developing customer-partners, and this momentum allowed us to have the results like this after three years of hard work. In the future, we are planning to expand the domain of the online platform and include the agricultural sphere as well", said the Chief Executive Officer of ACBA-CREDIT AGRICOLE BANK Hakob Andreasyan.
"Creating an opportunity for the SMEs is one of IFC's strategic priorities globally and in Armenia as well. This new platform is a result of the mutual efforts of the Bank and IFC and is aimed at providing the SMEs knowledge necessary for development. We highly appreciate the commitment of the Bank to lead this initiative", said the IFC South Caucasus regional manager Jan van Bilsen.
To recall, "ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank" CJSC has been operating in Armenia since 1995. Since September 2006, the majority shareholders of the Bank have been Credit Agricole S.A. (15.56%) and SJSC "Sacam International" (part of Credit Agricole S.A - 12.44%). Along with them, 10 agricultural cooperative unions hold shares in the capital of ACBA- Credit Agricole Bank. By the coverage of the branch network and the number of regional branches, the Bank holds the second position. According to the key balance sheet figures, ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank is in the TOP-5. The bank is in TOP-10 by the amount of lending to SMEs-34 bln AMD or 18% of the total loan portfolio of the bank as of July 1 2016. In the banks' total lending to SME the ACBA Credit Agricole Bank's share is 6%. The bank's agricultural loans portfolio reached 87 bln drams ($182.8 mln) as of July 1 2016. ACBA Credit Agricole bank traditionally holds the major share in total agricultural loans of the banking system-55% as of July 1 2016. As this bank is specialized on agricultural lending the share of agricultural loans in its credit portfolio reaches 41%.
To recall, Armenia became an IFC member in 1995. Since then, IFC's long-term investment commitments have totaled $340 million, including nearly $23 million mobilized from other lenders, financing 47 projects across a range of sectors. IFC has also supported trade transactions worth around $130 million through its trade finance program, and implemented a number of advisory projects focused on private sector development. In fiscal year 2015, IFC invested almost $18 billion in developing countries worldwide. IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with 2,000 businesses worldwide, we use our six decades of experience to create opportunity where it's needed most.
