OREANDA-NEWS. January 25, 2010. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and ARARATBANK concluded a co-financing agreement. Loan funds under the said agreement will be provided for an unprecedented term of 7 years, reported the press-centre of ARARATBANK.

The agreement was signed between Ashot Osipyan, executive director and chairman of executive board of ARARATBANK, and Valeriu Razlog, head of Yerevan office, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The co-financing agreement for USD4.000.000 will make it possible to provide lending to all business industries of Armenia.

Signing of this agreement was due to EBRD's high esteem regarding ARARATBANK's management, financial indicators of the last three years, its public reputation, trust in the business community, as well as close and successful cooperation between EBRD and ARARATBANK.

This co-financing agreement is the fifth significant program during the past two years executed between ARARATBANK and EBRD.

ARARATBANK and EBRD signed a lending agreement of USD5,000,000 back in January 2008 and implemented small and medium business lending programs together with "Microlending -Armenia" lending program enabling ARARATBANK customers to use credit products based on new technologies.

Within the scopes of this agreement a trade facilitation program for USD1,000,000 has also been implemented. The program volume was increased by another USD1,000,000 considering ARARATBANK's success in program implementation.

In October 2008 ARARATBANK and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development signed an agreement on EBRD's participation in ARARATBANK's share capital, whereby EBRD acquired 25% in the share capital of ARARATBANK thus emphasizing its reliance upon ARARATBANK.

Later on, ARARATBANK and the Canadian CRC Sogema consulting company entered into an agreement on institutional building program of ARARATBANK, as envisaged by the agreement between ARARATBANK and EBRD signed in October.

In August 2009 ARARATBANK signed an agreement on acquiring the Izmirlian-Eurasia Universal Credit Company and became the sole owner of the named company.

As of December 31, 2009 total assets of ARARATBANK ojsc amounted to AMD41 billion 342 million. The increase as compared with the previous year was AMD11 billion 710 million or 39.5%.

Loan investments as of December 31, 2009 totaled AMD16 billion 175 million producing a growth of 33% as compared with the previous year.

Liabilities amounted to AMD33 billion 494 million, showing a growth of AMD11 billion 406 million or 51.6%.

Total equity as of December 31, 2009 was AMD7 billion 848 million having grown by AMD304 million or by 4% as compared with the previous year.

In 2009 the number of the bank's customers has grown by 35.5 thousand or by 106.9% totaling 68.6 thousand customers.

Number of plastic cards has grown by 16.9 thousand or by 79.3% totaling 38.2 thousand cards.

Profit earned in 2009 was AMD580 million.