The traditional "V International Banking Forum" organized by the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication and Azerbaijan Banks Association, with the support of the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport and the Small and Medium Business Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan has started. The purpose of the forum, entitled "Cashless Economy: Reliable, Safe and Sustainable", is to become a platform that discusses initiatives and upcoming challenges to cashless  the economy, digitalization, the current state of financial technologies, new and future trends,modern banking products, opportunities in fintex, cybersecurity measures.

There will be   representatives from the Finance office of the President of the Republic of Turkey, the Central Bank of Turkey, the Central Bank of Russia, the International Monetary Fund, The International Finance Corporation. The heads of relevant government agencies, commercial banks, local and foreign businesses and public organizations,   representatives of about 100 international organizations and renowned companies will also be among the participants.

More than 1000 participants are expected to join the panels which will feature more than 40 speakers.  

Executive Director of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication (CAERC) Vusal Gasimli gave opening remarks  on the topic of "Cashless Economy: Reliable, Safe and Sustainable".

The creation of a digital ecosystem in Azerbaijan is the baseline of institutional, socio-economic reforms in the country. “Even before the pandemic, in September 2018, Mr. President demonstrated his political support for building a digital economy in the country by approving the "State Program on Expansion of Digital Payments for 2018-2020." Within the framework of the successfully implemented program in 2020, the Central Bank, together with relevant government bodies and the banking sector have implemented various measures and local projects to further improve the institutional environment for digital payments, the formation of the digital ecosystem and other areas.” – A.Guliyev stressed.

The capabilities of the Instant Payment System based on the latest trends in the field of payment have been expanded, cheap payment methods such as QR codes have been developed to allow small businesses to accept cashless payments, and businesses that have been selected as a pilot started introducing payments through QR codes. A blockchain-based “Digital Identification System” (DIS) has been launched to computerize banking services  at an innovative level and expand the scope of remote services.

At the initiative of the Central Bank, with the support of the banking sector and international card organizations, Apple Pay payment solution has been successfully activated in Azerbaijan with the purpose of increasing  the range of contactless payment solutions in the country and the introduction of innovative technologies.

As a result of the measures taken, a high growth rate is observed in the country's non-cash payment indicators.  According to the indicators of 10 month period of the  current year, The share of cashless turnover in countrywide  card payments increased by 8.2 percent compared to the same period last year and exceeded 30% for the first time. The volume of domestic non-cash payments made by payment cards increased by 71% compared to the same period of 2020 and amounted to 8.6 billion manat. The volume of e-commerce, which has a large share in non-cash payments, increased by 65% compared to the same period last year and reached 5.5 billion manat. The number and volume of nationwide contactless payments made by cards exceeded the 10-month indicators of 2020 by 3.9 and 6.3 times, respectively.

It is worth noting that, more than 500 bank employees, entrepreneurs and students took part in about 10 seminars and webinars on the topics discussed prior to the forum.