Azerbaijan, Türkiye discuss financial sector development PHOTO

Members of the Board of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan Togrul Aliyev, Vusal Khalilov, Turkish Deputy Chairman of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency Mustafa Aydın have exchanged ideas on the trends shaping the financial sector in both fraternal countries.

The sides exchanged these ideas during a meeting on December 4, Caliber.Az reports, citing the Central Bank of Azerbaijan.

During the discussion, the sides explored opportunities for using technological solutions in regulation and supervision, and addressed the expansion of cooperation in the field of digital banking.

Over the past five years, Azerbaijan has consistently expanded its cashless payment infrastructure, making significant progress in the digitization of banking services and the overall payment operating environment. To accelerate these processes, in January 2024, the Board of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) approved the "Financial Sector Development Strategy for 2024–2026."

This document outlines the implementation of corporate governance mechanisms within the domestic financial sector, strengthening transparency, and attracting FinTech companies as part of the plans to introduce an OpenBanking platform in the country. The achievements in implementing this new strategy and the promising plans for this track were highlighted at the 8th International Banking Forum (IBF 2024) that began in Baku on December 3.

The new strategy of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) is focused on expanding financial accessibility, increasing the coverage of industry services, and diversifying financial instruments, while also improving the supervisory system and managing network risks. However, its primary goal is to accelerate the digitalisation of the financial market and liberalise the national payment system, creating a favourable environment for market participants and consumers.

By Naila Huseynova