Union chairman stresses need to set up state bank

“The interest rates of our banks are so high that they do not contribute to the development of Armenia’s economy,” Chairman of the Union of Domestic Manufacturers of Armenia Vazgen Safarian said at the meeting with reporters today.

He expressed an opinion that the interest rate of refinancing should be reduced from 8% to 5%, which will allow commercial banks not to raise interest rates of credits to 12-14%. Instead, the banks will be able to provide credits at much lower interest rates.

The interest rates of Russian banks are approximately the same, but in Russia there are also state banks providing loans at affordable interest rates. There are no state banks in Armenia, except for the Central Bank of Armenia, which is not engaged in lending.

“Drastic changes are necessary: we should set up a state bank,” V. Safarian said.