On October 1, 2025, the Baku Stock Exchange (BSE) hosted the Ring The Bell Ceremony dedicated to the launch of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD) Azerbaijani manat-denominated floating-rate bonds on the capital market.

The ceremony began with an opening speech by Mr. Ruslan Khalilov, CEO of the Baku Stock Exchange. In his remarks, Mr. Khalilov described the EBRD’s issuance of floating-rate bonds denominated in Azerbaijani manat as an innovative step for the country’s financial system. He also emphasized the importance of developing local currency-denominated capital market instruments in emerging economies, noting their role in preserving macroeconomic stability.

Other speakers included Mr. Tarlan Rasulov, Chief Director of the Central Bank of the Republic of Azerbaijan; Mr. Ramin Nurahmadov, Member of the Management Board of the National Depository Center of the Republic of Azerbaijan; Mr. Mikhail Grechikho, Deputy Director for Central Asia, Caucasus, and Türkiye at the EBRD; Ms. Ulviya Zeynalova-Bochkin, Managing Partner of Dentons Azerbaijan; Mr. Nadir Babazade, CEO of ABB–Invest Investment Company; and Mr. Vugar Namazov, CEO of Unicapital Investment Company.

Speakers highlighted the significance of this issuance by a leading international financial institution, noting that for the first time, the bond’s coupon rate is benchmarked to the AZIR (Azerbaijan Interbank Rate). They underlined that the listing of these bonds on the Baku Stock Exchange will have a positive impact on both local and international investors.

It should be noted that the bonds are unsecured, dematerialized, registered, and floating-rate instruments with a nominal value of AZN 100,000 each, a quarterly coupon payment, and a maturity of 1 year. The underwriters for the issuance are ABB–Invest and Unicapital investment companies.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, representatives of the parties rang the bell to symbolize the launch of the bonds in the primary market. Thus, trading of the EBRD bonds officially commenced on the Baku Stock Exchange trading platform.