Financial Institutions Discuss Investment Opportunities in Armenia

YEREVAN — On September 25, the USAID-funded Enterprise Development and Market Competitiveness (EDMC) Project and Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF) Armenia launched a conference entitled “Easing Access to Affordable Capital for Competitive Private Businesses.” The conference focused on private equity finance and investment opportunities in Armenia, bringing together representatives of international investment institutions and the Armenian business community to discuss opportunities and obstacles of investing into the Armenian economy.

Board Member of the Central Bank of Armenia Armenak Darbinyan, USAID Armenia Economic Growth Office Director Naren Chanmugam, and SEAF Executive Chairman and Co-Founder Hubertus van der Vaart delivered remarks, encouraging businesses to take advantage of the conference to learn more about equity finance and application procedures. Conference participants included representatives of major financial institutions in Armenia, consulting companies, and small and medium enterprises.

At the conference senior representatives of EBRD Armenia, IFC Armenia, and Ameriabank Investment Banking talked about existing investments and financing in Armenia, as well as discussed new investment opportunities in the area. Participants heard from SEAF Caucasus Growth Fund, which has invested in SMEs in Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan since 2012, and from Grant Thornton, which has conducted the “Establishing a Private Equity Fund in Armenia” feasibility study, through EDMC support. Private companies and investors also presented real-life examples and success stories during the event.

The conference enabled key players in the field of equity finance to coordinate efforts and facilitated a dialogue between companies and financial institutions to help raise awareness about equity finance and spur future investments.