Ameriabank received a USD 20 million credit from French company Proparco, operating in private sector development, which will be directed to energy efficiency, renewable energy, agribusiness, food processing, education and healthcare projects in Armenia.

Ameriabank CEO Artak Hanesyan and Head of FI in Proparco Guillaume Barberousse signed the according agreement in Yerevan today.

“We started cooperating with Ameriabank in 2013, mostly targeting agricultural production and processing. We intend to deepen previous program and add financing of energy and social sectors, while supporting development of one of Armenia’s most important industries – agriculture,” Guillaume Barberousse said.

Artak Hanesyan attached importance to cooperation with Proparco and expressed his hope that the new credit will allow them to expand the scope of collaboration, serving the interests of the bank’s clients.

“Signing of this agreement is another step to further develop our economy and engage long-term funds with affordable rates in order to create new jobs,” he stressed.

In the answer to Banks.am’s question whether absence of insurance in agribusiness hinders expansion of credit services in the sector Artak Hanesyan noted that they work mainly with processing enterprises and less so with small farms, which allows the bank to be secure from harvest-related direct risks.

“As for infrastructure, we cannot expand and provide small loans yet. We emphasize more the enterprises working in agricultural production manufacture and processing,” Artak Hanesyan explained.