Friday, January 24 2014

Rotation of Ameriabank's Board of Directors is part of a new business culture and the resignation of Ruben Vardanyan, Russian businessman, from the post of the Chairman of Ameriabank's Board of Directors should be considered in the light of this very policy.  Now, Vardanyan is a member of the Board of Directors at Ameriabank. Talking to the local Shant TV, the founder and the head of IDeA Foundation Ruben Vardanyan said the issue must not be personified, as the bank has become rather a serious institutional structure. 

At the same time, Vardanyan said, he is proud of this project (establishment of the bank - ed.) and his colleagues, including Director General of Ameria Group Andrey Mkrtchyan, who replaced him on the post of Chairman of the Board of Directors, who managed to develop consulting business in the country in line with international standards despite unfavorable conditions in the country and continued to successfully provide services to leading companies in the world. Vardanyan said many banks in Armenia represent international bank groups and holdings and the fact that Ameriabank has managed to take leadership positions by many key figures in the banking system over the 5 years since its foundation shows that "sometimes we underestimate our potential." "I was an investor who helped establishing the bank. And it was important to have a guarantor in my person to head that project," the investment banker said. Now when the bank has become institutional, it no longer needs such guarantor, he said.  He recalled that the Board of Directors comprises highly-qualified professionals known to the world financial society: Robert fon Rekowski from Fidelity Investments, Nubar Afeyan - managing partner of Flagship Ventures, Gor Nahapetyan - Managing Director of Sberbank CIB. 

Speaking of personal plans, Vardanyan recalled that he was an investment banker at the age of 22 and headed Troika Dialog that later became part of Sberbank. "Over the last 2-3 years I have been working at Sberbank as Advisor to Chairman of the Board Herman Gref. However, I plan to more actively engage in some areas, particularly in charitable projects for Armenia and in the education field. I have rather a big package of projects to implement. I think it is very important to be consistent and to finish what you have started and promised to do. I am still working at the Board of Directors of Ameriabank, I have joined the IFC Board, which is very pleasant and prestigious. I work at the boards of directors at Rosgosstrakh, Sibur, and an American company. I keep investing in various companies and have rather a big investment portfolio at KAMAZ.  I am implementing projects in the real estate sector together with my colleague Gagik Adibekyan. I have many business and public projects. I am a member of the Board of Directors at a number of business schools in Brazil, Japan and China. I have many ideas and plans to work with very interesting businessmen, people that are determined to change our environment and make it more positive, more successful, to give people confidence in their future," Ruben Vardanyan said.