Azernews.Az

By Gulgiz Dadashova

The 6th International Banking Conference of CIS member states opened in Azerbaijan`s capital on November 15.

The conference is titled "the Financial Markets of the CIS are the Basis of Economic Integration in the Commonwealth".

It is organized by the CIS Financial and Banking Council and supported by the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) and CIS Executive Committee.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Chairman of the CIS Executive Committee Sergei Lebedev said a unique platform was created in the CIS for fruitful economic cooperation.

"An effective multi-level integration that ensurs fruitful economic cooperation among the CIS member-states was formed," Lebedev said.

"The results of this collaboration can be seen in the total foreign trade turnover of the CIS countries, which amounted to $1.277 trillion in 2012. The figure increased by three per cent compared to 2011. As of January- July 2013, the figure at current prices amounted to $710.6 billion."

According to Lebedev, the CIS states show economic development amid difficult external conditions.

"The global crisis of 2008-2009 clearly showed the dependence of the CIS countries' economies from global trends," Lebedev said.

Lebedev also voiced hope that this conference held in the capital of Azerbaijan, a country attaching great importance to the cooperation with the CIS, as President Ilham Aliyev said, will be productive for all participants.

Anatoly Kazakov, chairman of the Coordination Council of the CIS Financial & Banking Council, stated that the creation of a common financial market of the CIS states acquires a special significance today.

"We need common payment and settlement systems, single markets of corporate debt obligations, unified exchanges and depositories," Kazakov said.

He pointed out that the creation of a single financial market of the CIS is not practical at the moment, but the CIS needs to accomplish it step by step.

"So, the CIS' integrated currency market which opened at the Moscow Interbank Currency Exchange has already delivered its first results. Also, the share of the national currencies in settlements between the CIS countries is increasing. If earlier it was 5% of the bilateral trade, now it approaches 40%, and makes up 70% in the countries of the Customs Union," Kazakov said.

He also underlined the leading role of the Customs Union in the process of the mutual integration of financial markets and systems.

"For example, as part of the 20th anniversary of the Bank of Kazakhstan, the chairmen of the Central Banks of Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan will discuss the introduction of a single banking regulator for the countries of the Customs Union in Astana. We don't have such a regulator today," Kazakov said.

Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan Rashad Orujev, in turn, said that serious changes in the financial-banking system are taking place all over the world.

"Today, it's evident that the potential for the extensive growth of banking systems is practically exhausted in many countries, and therefore many banking structures develop innovative products and types of business. In such conditions, a proactive attitude becomes increasingly important for the banks. Further development of the banks depends on such an attitude and this situation in its turn imposes special requirements on the regulators: they cannot regulate the system in the same way as they did it a year before. In this regard, the Central Bank is focused on introducing certain elements of Basel III regulatory package that in our opinion will allow to minimize risks for the banking sector even in case of rapid growth of its assets", Orujev said.

In his words, the approach to the banking business itself needs to be revised as well.

The forum will focus on the banking systems in the CIS countries with an eye to the globalization of the world financial system, specific features of the retail banking market, and prospects for the development of regional, and in particular the Caspian, economic programs in the CIS.

The conference will continue with plenary sessions.