Almaty
The Board of Directors of JSC 'Nurbank' introduced the new Chairman of the Management Board, Marat Zairov, who officially assumed his duties yesterday, March 2, 2009.
The changes in Nurbank’s management are driven by the completion of the stabilization phase and the need to strengthen the further development of the Bank.
It can now be stated that the goals set in August 2007 — namely the stabilization of the situation in Nurbank and the establishment of foundations for market development in the SME and retail sectors — have been achieved. The foundations of effective corporate governance, built in accordance with the best global standards, have been laid, and there has been significant improvement in the Bank's image in the eyes of its clients, institutional investors — both internal and external — as well as rating agencies. The visualization of positive changes in Nurbank is the beginning of the current restyling of the Bank, aimed at emphasizing Nurbank’s principles of openness and transparency.
Thus, it can be noted that a foundation for the long-term development of the Bank has been laid today: an accelerated modernization of the Bank's IT infrastructure has been conducted, new principles for working with the retail business have been established, and a qualitatively new development of the SME sector has been launched.
The Chairman of Nurbank's Board of Directors, Nurali Aliyev, on behalf of the Board of Directors and shareholders, thanked Nurmukhamed Bektimisov for successfully navigating through a challenging phase and noted the 'achievement of positive results in the Bank's development.' At the same time, Mr. Aliyev highlighted the need to strengthen the further development of the Bank in the area of small and medium-sized enterprise lending and the improvement of sales channels at the new stage of development, which is why the Board of Directors invited Marat Zairov to the position of Chairman of the Management Board of Nurbank. Mr. Zairov has extensive experience — over 8 years — as Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of JSC 'Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan', where he supervised SME activities, the retail block, and the branch network.
In turn, Mr. Bektimisov thanked the Board of Directors for their support and all Nurbank employees for their faith in success and everyday contribution to the development and prosperity of the Bank.
Mr. Zairov expressed gratitude to the Board of Directors for the trust placed in him and noted that the principles of operation remain unchanged, based on the Bank's mission and values — transparency, openness, market orientation, and professionalism.
The primary plans for the new head of Nurbank include focusing on the development of the SME sector and the retail block, and forming a clear mechanism for cross-selling. 'Modernizing the product line — both for legal entities and individuals, focusing on the development of new technologies, strengthening sales channels of banking products, improving customer service quality — these are the priority directions for achieving qualitative growth on a long-term basis,' Mr. Zairov emphasized. Undoubtedly, the bank will continue working with corporate clients, providing them with comprehensive services.
Overall, Nurbank will continue to adhere to a moderately conservative development policy, focusing on internal funding sources and moderate asset growth.
It is worth noting that such a strategy has already yielded results. Nurbank was one of the first to reduce the share of external borrowings in the bank's total liabilities from 42% to 11%. In April of this year, Nurbank is due to make payments on a syndicated loan — $100 million and on eurobonds in 2011 — $150 million. Both repayments will be made using the bank's own resources.
By the end of the year, there was a significant increase in deposits from the population — by 104%. The product line for individuals meets all client needs and is targeted at all population categories. Since the beginning of 2009, the Bank has implemented a number of new products. An Internet banking service for individuals — Open24, was launched, allowing every Nurbank client to independently manage their funds at any time, without needing to visit Bank branches. At the end of February, the Bank began issuing the elite payment card — Visa Infinite. By the start of 2009, the number of issued payment cards reached 250,000, and the number of ATMs exceeded 250.
Nurbank demonstrates stable growth in the SME lending sector. Overall, the SME loan portfolio grew by 109% over the year. Collaboration with the 'Damu' Entrepreneurship Development Fund played a significant role in this rapid surge. According to the General Agreement signed on February 14, 2009, Nurbank is additionally allocated 8 billion tenge for the support and development of small and medium enterprises.
In summary, it can be stated that Nurbank has all the necessary components to strengthen its market positions and ensure further qualitative development.