Armbrok was established thirty years ago as a limited liability company and has now evolved into the leading investment firm in Armenia and an open joint stock company. We sat down with CEO Aram Kayfajyan and Head of Marketing Lilit Harutyunyan to discuss the company’s development and its vision for the future of investment in Armenia.
Text : Nazareth Seferian
Photo : Armbrok
Aram Kayfajyan believes that over the past three decades, Armbrok has both witnessed and actively contributed to the parallel growth of Armenia’s capital markets and economy. “Capital market developments drive economic growth, but the relationship also works in reverse—higher GDP and increased resources fuel the expansion of capital markets. In Armenia, we’ve observed these two grow hand in hand,” said Kayfajyan.
A dynamic team
Expatriates and repatriated Armenians make up around one-fourth of the professional staff at Armbrok. This is quite natural given that the expertise and experience needed to work in this field were virtually nonexistent in the country until recently. “There were no asset management companies in Armenia, so there was no way to get an internship and learn on the job. Now, our expat professionals are training junior staff members and helping them grow. As a result, five years later, we will have around one hundred asset managers in Armenia, whereas the number just three years ago was zero,” Kayfajyan stated. He believes that practical experience has clear superiority over academic training in this sector. “If I have a choice between someone with a humanities degree who has interned for six months at Goldman Sachs and someone with a bachelor’s degree in finance but no experience, I’ll go for the intern,” he said. The international flavor of the Armbrok team also comes with a fresh corporate culture, making the company a dynamic and fascinating employer. “Our expats have transformed how our team approaches work. For instance, they’ve inspired our staff to take up various after-work hobbies, such as running and other sports. In 2024, we proudly sponsored the Yerevan Marathon, where many of our team members participated and successfully crossed the finish line,” said Lilit Harutyunyan, Head of Marketing. She believes that the secret to Armbrok’s success lies in its people.
Investment opportunities in Armenia
Armbrok has grown into a regional company, with more than 75% of its clients for asset management and brokerage services based abroad. At the same time, the company stays attuned to the Armenian market, recognizing its immense potential. “We’ve seen significant growth in the bond market. Today, there is over 1 billion USD in outstanding volume—a figure that was unheard of just a few years ago. Investing in bonds has now become a common practice,” Kayfajyan stated. The equity market, meanwhile, is lagging behind. Kayfajyan mentioned two factors to explain this. “First, the instrument itself is lacking–there aren’t enough Armenian companies issuing stock here. Then, there is the technical aspect–it’s currently easier to access the New York Stock Exchange directly than the one in Armenia. Moreover, there is little incentive to develop the necessary technological solutions, since the equity market remains so small.”
Plans are underway to develop the technology, but most Armenian companies are simply not big enough to present compelling stock offerings. “There is obviously no company in Armenia comparable to the scale of Apple. But there aren’t even enough companies at the scale of, say, Kaspi Bank in Kazakhstan. In Georgia, two major banks control 75% of the market share between them. In contrast, Armenia’s largest banks each hold only 10-15% of the market share. This isn’t big enough for their stocks to be attractive to secondary markets. Markets like scale!” Kayfajyan explained.
A few large companies in Armenia have the potential for an interesting equity offering, but these have opted not to go to the market for varying reasons. The Ararat Brandy Company, for example, is owned by Pernod Ricard, a listed company and part of the CAC40. It is the group’s policy that none of the companies it owns should be listed separately. Additionally, several other family-owned companies in Armenia have chosen to remain private either because they do not require additional resources or because they prefer not to share ownership of their businesses. However, the team at Armbrok believes that the market will continue to evolve, and over time more companies will opt to offer equity in Armenia, complementing the existing range of corporate and government bonds.
Importantly, the ecosystem in the country is favorable and conducive to investment. The key factors—the rule of law and an attractive tax regime–are already in place, but more awareness is needed to attract investors, including Diaspora Armenians. Kayfajyan spoke confidently of the existing potential, “In the 1990s, the only investment opportunities that existed were in private equity, which carried significant risk. At that time, Armenia was also in a different place in terms of the rule of law. Now, we offer a range of opportunities and a much stronger ecosystem. So, we need to spread this message—it is time to invest in Armenia!”
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