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American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia
September 2018 AmCham is an independent business association operating in Armenia since 2000. AmCham represents the interests of about 130 member companies from almost all sectors of the economy. AmCham’s goal is to enhance US-Armenia business relations and improve business and investment climate in the country. The Chamber is pleased to have both local companies and companies from all over the world among its members. AmCham Armenia is a member of US Chamber of Commerce and European Council of American Chambers of Commerce.
On September 5, 2018, the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan and the U.S. Commercial Service in Moscow, in partnership with ID Bank, organized a one-day conference focused on franchise business opportunities. The event is part of an ongoing efforts to foster trade and investment between the United States and Armenia. The conference gave participants rare and valuable early access to well-known American brands eager to enter the Armenian market.
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1 Amiryan St., Armenia Marriott Hotel Yerevan, 3rd floor, room 315, 317, Yerevan 0010, RA Email: info@amcham.am / events@amcham.am Tel: (+374 10) 599 902 (+374 55) 599 187 Visit our page:
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PUBLISHED AND DESIGNED BY AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN ARMENIA
U.S. EMBASSY FRANCHISE CONFERENCE CONNECTS AMERICAN BUSINESSES WITH ARMENIAN INVESTORS
“I know there are many success stories waiting to be written here today,” Ambassador Richard M. Mills, Jr. said at the event’s opening ceremony. “It is my hope that we, at the U.S. Embassy, can set the stage for success by connecting Armenian and American companies. Then we can step back and let you do what you do best and build your businesses.” The franchise conference brought U.S. and Armenian businesses together, helping to forge new partnerships in various sectors, including hospitality, retail and tourism. More than 50 Armenian business leaders and government officials attended the conference, along with representatives from three U.S. corporations:
Papa John’s Pizza, Baskin Robbins, and Domino’s Pizza. The American business representatives presented their franchise concepts and learned about the Armenian business environment. Along with presentations of the American franchise businesses, participants got introduced with well-known Armenian organizations and learned about business, financial and legal aspects, including the importance of intellectual property rights as franchising in Armenia develops further. The event was organized given the success of a similar event in 2015 which resulted in Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt opening two franchises with local partners in the region.
AMCHAM LEADERSHIP MEETS WITH EBRD DELEGATION The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is partnering with the European Commission to undertake a review of the Investment Climate across the Eastern Partnership region. The objective of the project is to develop country-specific Investment Climate Action Plans for each of the 6 EaP countries – including Armenia. These Plans will be developed in consultation with the relevant country authorities as well as with key private sector, civil society and international community stakeholders to determine priority areas for reform and potential technical assistance activities that could be implemented to deliver practical improvements to the business environment in each country. In the scope of the project EBRD delegation, headed by Ms. Hester Coutanche - Principal Counselor, held a meeting with the AmCham Board members and USAID representatives to hear their insights into the investment climate in the country, corruption, new perspectives, corporate governance reforms, etc.
LIMITLESS HEDGE FUND DELIVERED A PRESENTATION ON AMCHAM PLATFORM On 13 September 2018, Limitless Hedge Fund, AmCham Gold Member, organized a presentation of the Fund at the Alexander, a Luxury Collection Hotel Yerevan. Limitless Hedge Fund was established last fall and commenced operations on November 1st, 2017. It is a dollar-denominated fund which invests client assets in highly liquid securities trading on US-based securities exchanges. Since inception the fund has returned 36% for its investors. The clients of the Fund are high-net worth individuals and shareholders/top executives of legal entities who had sufficient level of cash savings, are financially literate and seeking alternative investment possibilities outside of Bank deposits. The presentation detailed Fund's investment philosophy, its structure and provided a snapshot of security selection that had so far resulted in overwhelmingly positive returns. The presentation was conducted by Mr. Artyom Zakaryan, CFA, the founder of the Fund's management company and the largest shareholder of the Fund. For more info, please check the http://limitlesshedgefund.com/.
AMCHAM ATTENDS "STRATEGIC CSR: BUSINESS BENEFITS BEYOND PR" BUSINESS BRUNCH On September 26, 2018 AmCham Members participated at the business brunch on the topic of “Strategic CSR: Business Benefits beyond PR” organized within the scope of the project “Promotion of CSR in Private Companies in Armenia” implemented by CSR Armenia with the support of the British Embassy Yerevan. The overall objective of the project is “improving conditions for increasing local CSR activities in Armenia and maximizing the value of corporate social investment in selected 4 sectors: tourism, ICT, finance and public service providers”. AmCham and the Armenian British Business Chamber (ABBC) participated in the organization of the business brunch through their networks to augment private sector outreach. The companies which have adopted or are committed to adopting responsible business ethics and the key CSR topics and principles set by ISO 26000 and those that wanted to develop innovative and sustainable business practices that create economic and social value attended the business brunch. AmCham thanks to its active Members: Congress Hotel Yerevan, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company Armenia, PricewaterhouseCoopers Armenia (PWC), McCann Yerevan, Radisson Blu Hotel Yerevan, Target Group, AmeriaBank for participating at the meeting. AmCham plans to continue promoting CSR in Armenia within its Responsible Business Network (RBN) initiative.
ON 14-16 NOVEMBER, YEREVAN WILL HOST A HIGH-LEVEL INTERNATIONAL EVENT ENERGY WEEK ARMENIA 2018 The event is held under the auspices of the Government of RA to demonstrate prospects of the country’s energy sector and to unlock the potential of international cooperation. It will serve as a platform to discuss new opportunities as well as challenges faced by the energy sector of Armenia. The development of Armenia’s renewable energy resources is of the utmost importance in order to promote the country’s energy security. At the same time, there is huge untapped potential in the country from solar, hydro, wind, and geothermal sources. International investors from the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Austria, USA, UAE will be in attendance to learn about investment opportunities in this sector. Energy Week Armenia 2018 is jointly organised by Armenia Renewable Resources and Energy Efficiency (R2E2) Fund and Invest In Network Limited, a UK-based consultancy, with the official support of the Ministry of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Resources of RA. The event is sponsored by FRV Services Middle East, Vremya LLP A Keller Company, ACCIONA Energía, SolarOn, Shtigen, Arpi Solar, Siemens, ArmSwissBank, ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade. Association partner – AmCham Armenia. Among participants are International Energy Corporation, Electro Power Systems Operator, Energy Invest Holding, High Voltage Electric Networks, Electric networks of Armenia, IFC, EBRD and many others. “Armenia has a great potential for development of renewable energy and in coming years, we are planning to dramatically increase the share of renewable energy in the general energy “balance sheet” through the construction of solar, wind and geothermal stations. Energy Week Armenia is an excellent platform to discuss these developments with potential partners from all over the world”. Ruben Gevorgyan, Director of Armenia Renewable Resources and Energy Efficiency Fund (R2E2) More details are available on the official website: https://armenergyweek.com/.
AMCHAM “BE MY GUEST” WITH ARMENIA WINE On 29 September 2018, AmCham was pleased to have yet another successful “Be my Guest” event with Armenia Wine. The Members were invited to Armenia Wine winery located in Sasunik Village, Aragatsotn Region, Armenia. They had a chance to have a fascinating tour at the winery, network over the welcoming drink (special Takar Extra Brut Rose). The participants immersed themselves into the interesting world of wine, followed the stages of wine production step by step – from cultivating grapes to getting wine, and to saw the aging cellars located underground, at the depth of 6,5 meters, as well as the latest up-to-date equipment which ensure quality winemaking throughout the entire production process of still and sparkling wines. Later, the guests enjoyed a lunch, offering Takar wines with exquisite Armenian cuisine at Nazani Restaurant of the Armenia Wine Winery. During the lunch Mr. Vahagn Mkrtchyan, the founder and co-owner of the winery, presented the history of the winery, talked about the rich history of Armenian wine production and the importance to maintain the national heritage.
AMCHAM SUPPORTS RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS IN ARMENIA September 28, 2018 The American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia (AmCham) is the leading business association in the country with more than 120 members from all business segments. Through advocacy efforts in various areas AmCham promotes a healthy business and investment environment in Armenia for all sectors of the economy its members represent. AmCham believes that sustainable businesses, which are closely connected to healthy economic, social and environmental systems, can create economic value and contribute to healthy ecosystems and strong communities. In this respect, AmCham welcomed the Government’s announced commitment to promote responsible practices and international standards in the mining sector in Armenia. AmCham believes that responsible mining, based on ICMM, IFC, EBRD and other internationally recognized standards and frameworks, can be a viable part of the Armenian economy. As stated before, we believe that AmCham members like Lydian Armenia, which counts EBRD among its shareholders, already comply with these standards. Moreover, AmCham welcomes the protection of biodiversity and expects all member companies to comply with the law. While AmCham welcomes professional and impartial audits in the mining sector, the developments of the last few months have raised some concerns. While the head of the State Inspection of Environment and Mining claimed new ecological factors and publicly called to halt the project, the Minister of Environmental Protection refuted those findings. We consider it of utmost importance to ensure that such premature statements that are not based on sound scientific data do not send controversial messages to the market. AmCham also regrets that the roads to Amulsar remain blocked for more than three months and Lydian Armenia is deprived of its legal right to operate. While concerns around the industry are understandable, AmCham expects that these concerns be addressed through legal means and in a fair and professional manner. We also expect to see standards be applied equally and fairly to all players in the industry. As a business organization, AmCham looks forward to seeing a viable, responsible and sustainable mining sector in Armenia. In this regard a level playing field and the transparent, predictable and non-discriminatory application of the law are vital.