How Many Citizens Have Actually Exited the 'Black List': FIP

On April 19, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated during a Facebook live broadcast (37:00-37:30) that the credit history of 130,000 individuals had been 'cleansed' since the revolution. This declaration sparked numerous discussions, and on June 4, Sergei Bagratyan, a member of the Prosperous Armenia faction, questioned the credibility of this statement from the parliament podium.
'Now the government has been informed that 130,000 people are no longer on black lists. Is that true? I believe there is deceit here and the correct number has not been presented because if we ask around, we won't find any villager who is no longer on the black list,' Bagratyan announced.

The fact-checking platform decided to clarify the actual number of citizens who have exited the 'black list.' We particularly sent a request to the AKRA credit bureau asking how many citizens' credit histories had improved, in other words, how many citizens had been removed from the 'black list.'
In response to our inquiry, the credit bureau informed us that the issue concerns loans with a principal amount of up to 50,000 AMD that became overdue through May 1, 2018. Accordingly, as a result of this decision, the credit history of more than 126,000 individuals has improved.
We also contacted the Central Bank, where we were informed that actually, as a result of this decision, 126,585 names were removed from the banks' 'black lists,' meaning that precisely this number of individuals can again apply to banks and credit organizations for new loans. Furthermore, penalties and fines amounting to 11 billion 817 million AMD have been waived for 20,889 borrowers.

It should be noted that the approximately 130,000 waived credit obligations, which pertain to loans with a principal amount of up to 50,000 AMD, included not only monetary loans but also agreements signed with banks for the purchase of small household appliances, electrical equipment, and communication devices. This means that citizens who have purchased items like phones under installment payment conditions and have delayed payments were also included in this list.

By summarizing the clarifications received from the AKRA credit bureau and the Central Bank, as well as the statement made by the Central Bank on June 4, we can ascertain that the number declared by Nikol Pashinyan is nearly accurate.