Meeting of NBT Management with heads of credit institutions on strengthening correspondent relations with foreign banks

On May 27, 2021, at the National Bank of Tajikistan, under the chairmanship of Jamoliddin Nuraliev, First Deputy Chairman of NBT a working meeting “Strengthening correspondent relations with foreign banks” was heldwith participation of heads of the country's credit financial institutions.

The meeting was opened by the First Deputy Chairman of NBT Jamoliddin Nuraliev, who talked about the goal of expanding the process of opening correspondent accounts outside the country, eliminating existing barriers in this direction and strengthening compliance risk management system in credit financial institutions and emphasized the intensification of work on the part of credit institutions in direction of access to correspondent accounts with foreign banks. “In recent years, despite opening of correspondent accounts by credit financial institutions, there is still a need to strengthen the work to expand correspondent relations with foreign banks and increase the number of such accounts in foreign banks,” has said the First Deputy Chairman of NBT. At the same time, special attention was paid to measures taken to open correspondent accounts, in particular, measures discussed by NBT representativesled bythe First Deputy Chairman of the NBT and representatives of several banks in the Republic of Tajikistan, such as SSB of the Republic of Tajikistan “Amonatbank”, OJSC Orienbonk ”, OJSC Spitamenbonk ", OJSC Bank Eskhata", CJSC First Microfinance Bank ", OJSC" Sohibkorbonk "and LLC MCDO "Arvand”( Washington, USA )during the high level seminar “Correspondent banking relations termination in the Caucasus and Central Asia”. During this seminar, the Tajik side expressed its views on theIMF capacity in strengthening dialogue to eliminate problems in the field of correspondent banking relations for the countries of the region, as well as the role of consulting companies in strengthening correspondent relations and the IMF's ability act as a conductor in establishing a constructive regional dialogue for economic development and financial stability.

Likewise, the First Deputy Chairman of NBTover the meeting with representatives of "NAVIGANT" consulting company (Washington, USA), has noted that establishment of correspondent banking relations in the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus will contribute not only to the real growth of banking system, but also the growth of the economies of the countries of the region, improvement of their financial situation, and banking system of the Republic of Tajikistan is interested in developing such relations.

Drawing attention of participants to the number of issues that are currently of particular importance for domestic credit institutions to establish correspondent accounts outside the country, the First Deputy Chairman of the NBT has noted that the number of factors and limitations exists for expanding correspondent relations, problems related to compliance with and application of international requirements, internal control, compliance in credit financial institutions of the country, spoke about dynamics of the number of accounts, credit financial institutions accounts in the context of regions and countries in 2020, need to diversify and expand correspondent relations, problems with opening correspondent accounts, presence of a number of factors in the field of AML/CTF for opening internal correspondent accounts in foreign banks, AML /CTF measures and establishing cooperation with international experts in this area.

Nigina Kurbonalieva, Head of Financial Stability Department and Deputy Head of the Financial Monitoring Department Takhmina Salimova made a short presentation on results of NBT's activities for 2015-2021 in obtaining technical assistance to facilitate opening of correspondent accounts in foreign banks. They have underlined outcomes of mutual assessment of national AML/TF system in the Republic of Tajikistan, participation of NBT management and representatives of credit financial institutions in the high-level IMF / WB events on correspondent relations termination (Washington, USA) engagement of technical assistance from the EBRD and ICA for conducting trainings, as well as awarding 36 representatives of credit financial institutions with international certificates in the field of compliance.

After wards, Mahmoud Hamralizoda, Deputy Head of Payment System Department spoke about Currency cloud international company, which is the main partner of leading global fintech companies, providing services to legal entities in more than 180 countries of the world. It was noted that services of this company are provided using modern financial technologies, and cross-border interbank settlements by this company are carried out through correspondent bank accounts, and banks can also perform exchange operations with 38 currencies based onCurrencycloud platform.

Furthermore, heads of credit financial institutions expressed their views on current issues and received concrete answers to their questions regarding methods of establishing correspondent accounts and eliminating existing problems, contribution of credit financial institutions to solve this issue, supporting NBT in this direction, and opening correspondent accounts.

The NBT management encouraged participants to establish close mutually beneficial cooperation with international organizations to improve country's credit rating, underlined theneed to make efforts to improve management system, attract technical assistance to assess current situation, strengthen legal framework, conduct credit institutionsinternational rating, strengthen compliance, corporate governance, ensuring compliance of internal standards with standards of foreign banks, attract consulting companies to determine further steps, strengthen internal control system and create an appropriate structure for credit financial institutions to exercise internal control.

In the final part, the First Deputy Chairman of the NBT Jamoliddin Nuraliev once again emphasized the importance of continuing the work and operation of credit financial institutions in the field of expanding correspondent banking relations. Thus, NBT continues its dialogue with domestic credit institutions and international financial institutions with the view of establishing correspondent banking relations and for each participant it is necessary to make contribution to this direction and by fulfilling all the necessary conditions to achieve correspondent banking relations.

Press Division