As a financial institution that powers the growth of the small and medium enterprise (SME) sector in Armenia, Evocabank is actively driving the agenda of sustainable development in the country. We spoke to Karen Yeghiazaryan, Chairman of the Management Board, about how this aligns with his company’s values and his vision for the future.
Interview : Margarit Mirzoyan Photo : Evocabank
To set the context for the rest of this interview, please tell us your vision about how green and sustainable funding should help shape the private sector in the years to come. What is missing today, and how does Evocabank plan to fill that gap?
— Green and sustainable funding should make sustainability a normal part of doing business, not an optional add-on. In the years to come, companies that are environmentally and socially responsible should find it easier to grow, attract investment, and remain competitive. Sustainability should be embedded in business strategy, it is not just a checkbox. Today, the main challenge is access and guidance. Many businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, need affordable financing. When it comes to green financing, it is often more accessible due to its strategic importance and the strong support it receives from governments and development partners. However, many clients lack clear guidance on how to implement sustainable practices effectively. That’s where we come in to build a bridge that makes sustainability easier to understand and achieve, rather than something that feels complicated or out of reach. At Evocabank, we aim to fill that gap. We offer simple, accessible green loans designed to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. Beyond financing, we provide guidance and advice to help our clients understand what sustainability means in practice and how it can strengthen their businesses. Our goal is to make green business choices easier, more practical, and financially rewarding, so that sustainability becomes part of everyday operations rather than a separate initiative.
Evocabank signed a landmark €19.4 million agreement with EBRD in 2025, including a dedicated €5 million green financing facility under the Green Economy Financing Facility. How do such partnerships fit into Evocabank’s broader strategy, and what does it mean for businesses on the ground in Armenia?
— Evocabank collaborates with a range of international partners to make green financing as accessible and impactful as possible, and our partnership with the EBRD is a cornerstone of this approach. The agreement we signed in 2025, including a dedicated €5 million green financing facility, is just one example of how international collaboration supports sustainable development in Armenia. These partnerships serve multiple purposes. First, they allow us to provide more concessional lending to our clients, making it financially easier for businesses to invest in environmentally friendly solutions. Second, they bring valuable expertise and global best practices in sustainable finance, which helps us design products that are practical, innovative, and aligned with international standards. On the ground in Armenia, this translates into real benefits for businesses. For example, under the EBRD collaboration, clients were offered 10–15% cashbacks on loans for electric vehicles or solar panel installations. This not only reduces upfront costs but also encourages companies to adopt greener practices that improve efficiency, reduce emissions, and enhance competitiveness. These partnerships reinforce the strategy I mentioned minutes ago—to make sustainability part of everyday business.
It seems like Evocabank wants to differentiate itself from its competitors by making sustainable and green financing a core part of its offering. Would you agree with this assessment? If yes, is this something that comes from market demand, or are you positioning yourself as the first mover in the area?
— Yes, sustainable and green financing has become an integral part of our positioning, and we see it as both a response to market trends and a strategic choice. On one hand, there is growing demand from customers, investors, and international partners for environmentally responsible financing. People want to work with institutions that support sustainability, and businesses increasingly recognize that greener practices can improve efficiency and long-term competitiveness. On the other hand, the green finance market in Armenia is still developing, so by actively promoting and offering these products, we are positioning ourselves as an early mover. This allows us to set standards, share expertise, and lead the way in building awareness and adoption of sustainable practices.
How do you shape the values and behavior that would position Evocabank as a company that positively impacts the environment in every way, not just through its commercial offers?
— I focus on embedding environmental responsibility into Evocabank’s DNA, so it consistently shapes decisions, behaviors, and priorities across the organization. That means being explicit about what we stand for, and ensuring those principles are reflected in how we measure success, allocate resources, and run our day-to-day operations. Sustainability isn’t a parallel agenda, it is part of how we define performance. We also work to create an environment where teams feel ownership—they’re empowered to act, expected to consider environmental impact in their decisions, and recognized when they do so well. Over time, this builds shared accountability rather than top-down enforcement. Most importantly, we lead through choices. When trade-offs arise, consistently prioritizing long-term environmental impact over short-term convenience sends a clear signal. That ultimately embeds sustainability into the company’s DNA and makes it self-sustaining.
Green finance works best with a population that understands concepts like energy efficiency loans, carbon risk, or ESG-linked investment products. How do you assess the current level of financial literacy and environmental awareness in Armenia? What should be done in this area, and who should do it?
— In Armenia, financial literacy and environmental awareness are improving, but there’s still work to do. While more people are interested in investments and sustainable practices, concepts like ESG, carbon risk, or energy efficiency loans are still relatively new for most. We see this as a shared responsibility. Regulators, like the Central Bank, can set frameworks and lead national awareness campaigns. The key is making these concepts tangible. People understand green finance best when they see how it impacts them, like how an energy efficiency loan can reduce monthly costs, or how climate risk affects businesses they care about.
There has been some progress on the green agenda in Armenia with the development of the green taxonomy. What else would you want from Armenian policymakers and the Central Bank to accelerate this work in the country, and how far can you go without their active support?
— The green taxonomy was an important first step, as it gives banks and businesses a common language for sustainable finance. To accelerate progress, we would welcome more active involvement from policymakers and the Central Bank in three key areas. The first is regulatory clarity and consistency—we need clear rules on ESG reporting, green bonds, and sustainable lending, which will make it easier for banks to invest confidently in environmentally responsible projects. The second one consists of financial incentives. Tools like reduced capital requirements for green loans, tax breaks, or co-financing mechanisms can tip the scales toward sustainable investments. In Armenia, the state program on economic modernization, which subsidizes loan interest for newly purchased equipment, is an excellent example of how targeted incentives can support businesses in upgrading operations and adopting greener technologies. And finally, we need public engagement and education, such as large-scale campaigns to raise awareness about green products that will help demand grow, thus driving innovation and adoption.
Without active support from regulators and policymakers, we can still innovate internally, launch green products, set ambitious ESG targets, and educate our clients, but scaling these initiatives across the economy is slower. Policymakers and regulators create the ecosystem where sustainability moves from isolated initiatives to mainstream practice.
Ultimately, the greatest impact happens when banks, regulators, and policymakers act in concert. We can lead the market, but we cannot transform it alone.
You are a highly digital bank with limited physical presence in Yerevan and the provinces of Armenia. Do you plan to expand to more physical locations, or will you seek to grow mostly in the digital space? What are the challenges that come with this approach in Armenia today?
— Yes, we position ourselves as a digital-first bank and design our products and services with a mobile-first approach, keeping convenience at the core of everything we do. Most of our innovation starts in the app, ensuring clients can manage their finances anytime, anywhere.
At the same time, we recognize that trust, accessibility, and affordability often require a tangible presence. That’s why, despite being primarily digital, we’ve strategically opened several branches over the last few years, and this year we plan to add a few more, including locations outside of Yerevan.
Ultimately, our strategy is to grow mostly digitally, leveraging technology to scale quickly and efficiently, while selectively expanding our physical footprint where it maximizes trust, accessibility, and client engagement. This allows us to balance innovation with inclusivity, ensuring we reach both tech-savvy users and those who prefer personal interaction.