Payment of the last of three $240 million instalments will be deferred to January 3, 2022. It was initially supposed to be made in June this year.

The Central Bank said that the operating profit of the banking sector rose by 14.2 percent year-on-year to 411.2 million manats in the first five months of 2021.

In this region, neighbouring Georgia is automatically associated with wine. Azerbaijan, by contrast, is rarely associated with viniculture, though its roots run deep.

Established in 1992, IBA is the largest bank in Azerbaijan by assets. It reported a net profit of 32.4 million manats in the first quarter of 2021.