ArmInfo.  As of today we have a project which received positive expert opinion from the Armenia's Ministry of Nature Protection and we are ready to launch construction activities", Senior Manager on Sustainable Development at Geoteam CJSC Armen Stepanyan told journalists during the presentation of the International Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) of the Amulsar program, which knows no equals on the territory of Armenia. 

ArmInfo.Prime Minister of Armenia Hovik Abrahamyan received on May 21 Howard Stevenson, President and CEO of Lydian International British company, which implements the Amulsar project. As the press-service of the government informs the prime minister mentioned the importance of the implementation of such a large foreign investment program in the country, which will lead to development of mining industry and economic growth. According to him the mining sector is under spotlight of the government. At the same time Abrahamyan mentioned that the government intends to provide necessary assistance to the enterprises of the field taking into consideration drop of prices on the international market. 

ArmInfo.The Central Bank of Armenia (CBA) has approved the delivery and acceptance act concluded between ProCredit Bank and INECOBANK under the merger agreement, and registered INECOBANK's redrafted charter. According to the new charter, INECOBANK is the legal successor of ProCredit Bank. The CBA press office has told ArmInfo that the CBA Board took that decision on 10 May 2016. By the same decision, the CBA has declared ProCredit Bank's No.85 license null and void.        

ArmInfo. The Central Bank of Armenia has approved the merger agreement of ProCredit Bank and INECOBANK. The press office of INECOBANK told ArmInfo on April 28 that the Central Bank Board approved the merger agreement on April 26, 2016.   

ArmInfo. Inecobank CJSC was named "Best Trade Partner Bank" in 2015 at IFC's 7th Global Trade Partners Meeting, which took place in Milan, Italy, in February 2016. The Best Trade Partner Bank WCSS Award recognizes Inecobank's major contribution to IFC's trade finance programs in Armenia, the press-service of Inecobank reports. 

ArmInfo. On March 18, the Minister of Economy of RA received the delegation headed by the Regional Manager of South Caucasus of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Jan van Bilsen.

ArmInfo. Canadian experience in the field of mining industry is exceptionally important for the mining enterprises of Armenia, Hayk Aloyan, Managing Director of Geoteam CJSC, told journalists at the Armenian-Canadian business-forum on March 14.

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ArmInfo.  Lydian International Limited (100% owner of Geoteam CJSC) has announced that International Finance Corporation (IFC) has proposed to invest 40 million USD in the Amulsar construction financing arrangement. 

ArmInfo.  On February 11, the Armenian Government approved an action plan for 2016 to improve the business environment in Armenia. Armenian Minister of Economy Karen Chshmarityan said that the action plan is annually approved by the Government and aims to improve the business environment and Armenia's Doing Business indicators. The action plan concerns 12 ministries and implies a total of 29 events. As a result, Armenia can raise its rating from the 34th to the 24th position. 

ArmInfo.  Remarks voiced in the Armenian Parliament said that the closure of ProCredit Bank will leave over 100 employees jobless.  In response, INECOBANK - the new owner of ProCredit Bank - has come out with a statement: "One of the key prerequisites of the merge was the similarity of the two banks' corporate governance culture and the availability of professional teams. In fact, this can be considered the most important asset acquired by INECOBANK". 

ArmInfo. On January 21 Ameriabank signed two largest in the region deals with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and International Finance Corporation (IFC), which is a member of WB. The Chairman of the Board of Directors at Ameriabank Andrew Mkrtchyan and Nick Tesseyman, EBRD Managing Director, Financial Institutions signed the first deal. The second deal with IFC was signed by Andrew Mkrtchyan and Jan van Bilsen, IFC Regional Manager for the South Cacuasus. 

ArmInfo. IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a $50 million subordinated loan to Ameriabank, the largest bank in Armenia, to support its capital and boost its capacity to lend to local enterprises, expanding access to finance and helping drive economic growth and job creation.

ArmInfo. Pioneer and one of the consumer lending leaders on the Armenian market, INECOBANK will shortly become one of the largest financial institutions of Armenia. To attain that goal, the Bank has settled the problem of capitalization successfully and effectively. To meet the Armenian Central Bank’s requirement that comes into effect in 2017, the Bank has recently increased its capital by acquiring the Armenian subsidiary of the German ProCredit Bank and attracted the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) – a reliable partner and institutional investor as a stakeholder. In an interview with ArmInfo, Chairman of the Management Board of INECOBANK Taron Ganjalyan speaks of the merger and further development strategy of the Bank.

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ArmInfo. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is making an equity investment of AMD 9.8 billion (equivalent to US$ 20.3 million) for up to 22.7 per cent of shares in Inecobank, a specialist MSME and retail bank in Armenia.  Inecobank will use the proceeds of the EBRD investment to finance the acquisition of ProCredit Bank Armenia, another local bank oriented towards micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The merged bank will become a leading MSME lender in the country, serving over 10,000 businesses and 200,000 individuals.

ArmInfo.

ArmInfo.  The International Finance Corporation (IFC) supports consolidation of Armenian banks to boost SME lending. The Corporation's press office has told ArmInfo that IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a $20 million loan to Armenian Inecobank to support its acquisition of ProCredit Bank Armenia, promoting the first market-driven consolidation in Armenia's banking sector and boosting access to finance for small and medium enterprises. Further information will be presented at the Dec 10 event. 

ArmInfo. Lydian International Ltd (UK) has signed a $325 mln agreement with the financial and investment funds to finance the development of the Amulsar gold mine in Armenia, Armenian Minister of Economy Karen Chshmarityan said before the Government's meeting on Thursday.

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