27/01/2015

On 27 January, PASHA Bank, one of the largest banks of Azerbaijan, hosted a highly successful seminar, ‘Financial Market of Azerbaijan: Outlook for 2015’, which aimed to educate international financial audiences about the investment opportunities in the financial markets of Azerbaijan. The event was held in collaboration with Instinctif Partners, an international communications consultancy.

The seminar, attended by over 60 asset managers, investment bankers, financial press and other financial market professionals, analysed the progress that has already been made in the development of Azerbaijan’s financial markets and looked ahead to the key trends expected in 2015. Through speeches and panel discussions, attendees gained a real insight into the growth potential of Azerbaijan’s banking sector and domestic capital markets, and developed a greater understanding of why Azerbaijan is one of the most attractive economies of the Caucasus region.

A range of experts on Azerbaijan’s economy presented at the seminar, including Charles Hendry, UK Trade Envoy to Azerbaijan, Matthew Bryza, former United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan and Taleh Kazimov, Chief Investment Officer and CEO-elect of PASHA Bank. They were joined by senior representatives from the State Securities Committee, Chelsea Capital, Sturgeon Capital and SWIFT. The panel discussions were moderated by Ben Aris, Editor-in-Chief of bne and Tim Burke, Editor of EMEA Finance.

Taleh Kazimov, Member of the Board and Chief Investment Officer of PASHA Bank, commented: “At PASHA Bank, we believe that both Azerbaijan and the international investment community can mutually benefit from closer cooperation. Over recent years, Azerbaijan has made tremendous progress in modernising its economy, improving its business environment and diversifying away from being an exclusively oil and gas play. This seminar in London was yet another step in building greater understanding amongst the international financial community about our economy, drawing interest in investing in Azerbaijan and building friendships and partnerships for the future. We are very pleased with the response that we have received so far and look forward to continuing progress.”

Tony Friend, Managing Partner of Instinctif Partners commented: “We are delighted to have hosted PASHA Bank in London for this seminar. We have been working with PASHA Bank for a number of years and are pleased to see the interest in Azerbaijan growing amongst City audiences.”