YEREVAN, Armenia, Sept. 25, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Thirty-five years after independence, Armenia’s first generation of entrepreneurs is reaching the point of exits and succession, and the capital they built is looking for institutional management. On the occasion of the anniversary, Armenpress, the country’s official news agency, interviewed Irina Belysheva, CEO of Wilco Wealth Management, about Armenia as a jurisdiction for capital.

Belysheva explains that for three decades, private wealth in Armenia was inseparable from operating businesses:
“For a long time, wealth accumulation followed a familiar cycle: profits were either immediately funneled back into company growth or left in classic bank deposits, rather than being treated as an independent institutional asset class.”

That model is now changing. A new generation is stepping in: mobile, doing business across several jurisdictions, and approaching risk management and asset structuring differently.

She sees advantages in Armenia’s wealth management industry being relatively young. 
Unlike mature financial centers, it can be shaped without entrenched legacy systems and thus be more agile and technology-enabled. A compact market further enables an open, professional dialogue between the regulator and the industry, allowing for swift adaptation and continuous refinement of legislation.

Belysheva also highlights Armenia’s growing role as a connector between Europe, the Middle East and Asia, as the country integrates into transport corridors such as the North-South route and regional initiatives including the TRIPP project. As capital seeks diversification, she notes, international investors view jurisdictions as balancing points within broader global portfolios.

Regarding the diaspora, Belysheva argues that support based mainly on charity has reached its natural limits. Younger generations increasingly look at Armenia as investors, guided by what she calls “market return plus real impact.” Such investors are ready to commit capital when they see promising opportunities, transparent corporate governance and robust protection of their rights.

She also cautions against copying Western family governance templates:
“In our region, business is inextricably tied to personal relationships, respect for older generations, and the unwritten division of roles. Succession mechanisms cannot simply be copied out of a foreign textbook.”

The interview also openly addresses the gaps. Armenia’s banking sector is liquid and well capitalized, with assets reaching roughly 112% of GDP, yet the local stock and corporate bond markets remain small. She notes that the Government’s 2026-2031 Program prioritizes capital market development.

For Belysheva, the key test of the next decade is helping businesses lengthen their planning horizons, so that long-term capital stays in the domestic economy.

Belysheva describes Wilco’s role as that of “a reliable co-pilot” for Armenian founders and families: connecting Armenian capital with global markets and helping foreign and diaspora capital come to Armenia.

The full interview is available at: st1yle=”box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 30px;letter-spacing:0.1px;font-size:16px;line-height:32px;color:rgb(53,73,94);font-family:Roboto,Arial,sans-serif;word-break:break-word”>Wilco LLC is regulated by the Central Bank of Armenia. This material does not constitute an investment recommendation.

Notes to editors
About Wilco Wealth Management
Wilco Wealth Management (Wilco LLC) is an investment and wealth management firm headquartered in Yerevan, Armenia, regulated by the Central Bank of Armenia.

Media contact:
Lena Gyulkhasyan, Head of PR, Wilco Wealth Management: [email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at class=”gmail_default” st1yle=”font-family:tahoma,sans-serif”>

Yerevan has reiterated its position on the Western Sahara dispute while signaling interest in deepening political and economic ties with Rabat.

Agadir – Armenia has reaffirmed its support for Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for the Western Sahara, describing it as a realistic political solution and linking it to the strengthening of Morocco’s territorial integrity.

The position was reiterated during a meeting in New York between Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita and his Armenian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan, on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.

According to Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mirzoyan recalled a letter sent by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to King Mohammed VI in July, in which Pashinyan expressed Armenia’s support for Morocco’s initiative on the Sahara.

“We attach particular importance to the Moroccan initiative on the Sahara issue submitted to the UN in April 2007, considering it a realistic political solution,” Pashinyan said in the letter.

He added that UN Security Council Resolution 2797, adopted on October 31, 2025, represented a milestone and would pave the way for strengthening Morocco’s territorial integrity and promoting peaceful coexistence and prosperity in the region.

The Armenian prime minister also described relations between Armenia and Morocco as warm and friendly, noting that the two countries have significant potential to further develop their ties.

Armenia, Morocco seek stronger bilateral cooperation

The meeting also focused on strengthening relations between Yerevan and Rabat.

“The Ministers discussed opportunities for further development of relations between Armenia and Morocco, emphasizing the mutual political willingness to forge closer ties between the two countries,” Armenia’s Foreign Ministry added in its statement released today.

Mirzoyan and Bourita discussed expanding the countries’ bilateral legal framework and organizing high-level visits.

They also exchanged views on mechanisms to promote trade and economic ties, as well as cooperation within multilateral platforms and regional developments.

US companies are lining up for the chance to hit pay dirt from a confirmed Washington-brokered peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Such a reliable end to hostilities would provide the final 43-km (27-mile) piece for a corridor that would stretch from Turkey to China, via the South Caucasus and Central Asia.

On September 23, executives from more than 40 companies gathered in New York together with officials from countries angling to capitalise on the proposed corridor, known as the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) and set to feature rail and road links as well as energy and digital infrastructure.

Held on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly, the event featured US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Republican Senator Steve Daines of Montana, as well as officials from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and the five Central Asian states.

Once green-lighted, TRIPP, would be developed by a US-Armenian company in which the United States would hold a controlling stake. That is no doubt causing plenty of discomfort in Moscow, already miffed by Armenia increasingly slipping out of its sphere of influence, given the Western orientation of the small country’s Pashinyan administration. However, no contracts have yet been signed and no construction work in Armenia is expected before next year.

A difficulty is that while Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed on a peace treaty text in March 2025, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev endorsed it in the presence of US President Donald Trump at the White House five months later, the neighbouring countries have yet to finalise an agreement. Another is that the corridor would run through territory located not much more than a mortar’s throw from Iran and Tehran’s toleration of TRIPP will be sorely tested if it cannot resolve its war with the US to its satisfaction.

Some feasibility studies for TRIPP work in Armenia are under way and there could be some bidding for major contracts as early as before the end of this year.

Financial, corporate structures

Washington, meanwhile, under the watchful eye of the business-minded Trump, is creating financial and corporate structures aimed at turning TRIPP plans into viable projects that are investable.

The US and Armenia are establishing TRIPP Development Company. A majority stake in the joint venture will go to Washington. It would then supervise corridor infrastructure development and competitive tenders for the Armenian TRIPP section.

A Trans-Caspian Enterprise Fund will be established in parallel, tasked with sourcing private capital for connectivity projects across countries in the wider region with an interest in TRIPP proving a success.

Andrew D’Anieri, associate director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, told RFE/RL in New York that the two initiatives signalled deeper US economic engagement.

“Advancing TRIPP and announcing the Trans-Caspian Enterprise Fund in the presence of senior regional officials and major US companies sends a strong signal that America means business,” D’Anieri was quoted as saying.

“[But] TRIPP will advance more slowly given the degree of technical project difficulty and geopolitical sensitivities,” he added.

Road to Nakhchivan

For Azerbaijan, a tremendous reward from a signed peace deal and TRIPP will be finally having a straightforward overland link to its Nakhchivan exclave, which is wedged between Turkey, Iran and Armenia. The US, on the other hand, sees potential sizeable benefits at all points of the compass resulting from TRIPP.

RFE/RL also spoke to Angela Howard, a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Center on Economic and Financial Power, who remarked: “US investment in the Caucasus places an American foot in the gateway to Central Asia.”

That could prove vital in future to the shipping of critical minerals mined in Central Asia, often with US financing and project involvement, westward.

Special envoy Witkoff said he anticipated that TRIPP will generate “huge investment”, particularly in Armenia.

“Everybody’s focused now on transmission and speed to market,” he added, referencing estimates that the transit route could reduced some trade journeys by up to three weeks.

Armenian leader Pashinyan talked of TRIPP implementation “fully unlocking” regional connectivity. It would, he said, “open a new era” for Armenia and its economy.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said during the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York, United States, that peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan has opened new prospects for the South Caucasus. As Anadolu Agency reports, he linked these opportunities to the development of regional transport connectivity and economic cooperation.

Statement on the peace process

According to Pashinyan, peace between Yerevan and Baku was established on August 8, 2025, with the support and personal involvement of US President Donald Trump. He also said that there had been no deaths or injuries as a result of shelling between Armenia and Azerbaijan for two and a half years, calling this period unprecedented since Armenia gained independence.

TRIPP transport project

Pashinyan separately mentioned the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, or TRIPP, project. It envisages opening transport routes through Armenia’s territory and connecting Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Under the framework agreement between Armenia and the United States, the jointly established TRIPP Development Company will be 74% owned by the United States and 26% by Armenia during the initial 49-year term. If the arrangement is extended for another 50 years, Armenia’s share is to increase to 49%.

The Armenian prime minister said that rail links between Armenia and Azerbaijan had been restored for the first time since the Soviet period. According to him, the countries are also working to establish a direct rail connection between Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan. Pashinyan added that Armenia’s relations with Russia are undergoing a transformation.

New York, 24 September 2026

Thank you.

Honorable President of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly,

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

The peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, established on August 8, 2025, with the support and personal engagement of U.S. President Donald Trump, has opened up new opportunities for our region, the South Caucasus.

On this occasion, I would firstly like to address what President Trump referred to from this podium two days ago.

I have said it, and I reiterate it now: the breakthrough in the establishment of peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan simply would not have been possible without President Trump’s personal engagement and his resolute commitment to establishing peace.

President Trump’s personal presence has practical and symbolic expressions on the ground as well.

The fourth paragraph of the Peace Declaration adopted at the Peace Summit held at the White House on August 8, 2025, reads:

“The Republic of Armenia will work with the United States of America and mutually determined third parties to set forth a framework for the ‘Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity’ connectivity project in the territory of the Republic of Armenia. We confirm our determination to pursue efforts in good faith to achieve this goal in the most expeditious manner.”

The implementation of the TRIPP project is thus becoming a reality with tangible steps.

The Framework Agreement on Strategic Cooperation on the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity” project, signed between Armenia and the United States of America, will soon be ratified by the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia.

We are currently working with the United States Government to establish the TRIPP development company and to sign a shareholders agreement.

Accordingly, Armenia will initially have a 26 percent stake in the TRIPP development company, and the United States will have a 74 percent stake.

The agreement provides that, in the event of its extension, in the 50th year, the Republic of Armenia’s share will become 49 percent without additional investment.

One of the practical expressions of the TRIPP project will be the implementation of paragraph 3 of the Peace Declaration adopted by me and the President of Azerbaijan on August 8, 2025, and signed by the President of the United States as a witness.

Paragraph 3 of that Declaration reads:

“We reaffirmed the importance of the opening of communications between the two countries for intra-state, bilateral, and international transportation for the promotion of peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and in its neighborhood on the basis of respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and jurisdiction of the States.

These efforts are to include unimpeded connectivity between the main part of the Republic of Azerbaijan and its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic through the territory of the Republic of Armenia with reciprocal benefits for international and intrastate connectivity for the Republic of Armenia.”

The implementation of the TRIPP project will be of historic importance for the Republic of Armenia.

For the first time since the early 1990s, Armenia will get a railway connection with Azerbaijan, and thus also with Russia, Central Asia and China.

However, it should be emphasized that after the Peace Summit on August 8, 2025, Azerbaijan opened its railway to Armenia, and now we have a railway connection with Azerbaijan through the territory of Georgia.

The implementation of the TRIPP project will create a direct railway connection between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as a railway connection from Azerbaijan to Azerbaijan through the territory of Armenia, and from Armenia to Armenia through the territory of Azerbaijan.

This is because Armenia does not have a railway connection between its northern and southern regions, and in practice this is possible only through the territory of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of the Republic of Azerbaijan, while Azerbaijan does not have a railway connection with its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, and this is in practice possible only through the territory of Armenia.

In the near future, we will restore the railway sections of Meghri and Yeraskh in the Republic of Armenia that existed during the Soviet Union and were later destroyed, and the railway connections I mentioned will be opened.

But this will also have huge international significance because, in parallel with the construction of the aforementioned railways, we are waiting for the opening of the Armenia-Turkey railway.

Together with the TRIPP project, this could become one of the most important events in the field of international logistics in recent decades, because thus a new railway connection will be opened between China, Central Asia, Turkey and the European Union.

All this opens up another crucial opportunity for international logistics because the restoration of the railway connection between Armenia and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of the Republic of Azerbaijan also restores the railway connection between the Persian Gulf and the Black Sea.

This is an important nuance because it shows why and how the implementation of the TRIPP project promises great benefits to all countries in our region.

And these potential benefits can thus become a cornerstone of long-term stability and peace, especially between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

After almost 35 years of conflict, we are now discussing issues of building pipelines, power lines and roads, in addition to the east-west railway, within the framework of the TRIPP project.

And this will enable not only the Republic of Armenia, but also the entire South Caucasus, to become a Crossroads of Peace.

Honorable President of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly,

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

All of this reflects the optimism that has been established in our region and in the Republic of Armenia since the Washington Peace Summit on August 8, 2025.

The citizens of Armenia reaffirmed their optimism in the parliamentary elections held on June 7 of this year, where the overwhelming majority of voters voted in favor of the slogan “Own up the peace,” enabling the Civil Contract party to form a parliamentary majority.

The election took place under special circumstances of external information manipulation, and a number of external and internal forces had developed and were implementing a plan to seize the State using mass disinformation, hybrid and other tools, and also applying the distribution of mass voter bribes.

But the democratic and institutional reforms we have implemented in recent years proved their strength.

Armenia’s State institutions demonstrated high resilience, preventing State capture and giving the people of Armenia the opportunity to have their say.

The people of Armenia owned up the peace, and we must consistently engage in the further strengthening and institutionalization of peace in the relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The clarification of the fates of several thousand missing persons is a matter that needs to be addressed, on which we have reached an agreement to cooperate with Azerbaijan.

Armenia is ready to continue and deepen cooperation with Azerbaijan on the issue of demining.

And, of course, people in the Republic of Armenia are waiting for the return of Armenians who were detained in Azerbaijan as a consequence of the conflict.

Along with these issues still being unresolved, another reason that fuels pessimism is the use of conflict rhetoric from time to time in certain circles of Armenia and Azerbaijan, sometimes at the official level.

I think that we — I mean Armenia and Azerbaijan — have achieved more than sufficient results which should be more valuable for us than the use of conflict rhetoric, whether it is about history or historical-cultural monuments or anything else.

Nurturing the peace, strengthening it and making it institutional should be the main theme of cooperation between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

For two and a half years now, there have been no casualties or injuries as a result of crossfire between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

And I think this is the greatest value that was created as a result of cooperation in recent years.

We have never had such a period in the relations between independent Armenia and independent Azerbaijan before, even though Armenians and Azerbaijanis have centuries of experience of peaceful coexistence.

Our task, however, is not to restore that experience, but to build interstate relations on the basis of that experience of the peoples, based on respect for each other’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence.

This, by the way, is exactly the rhetoric that Armenia and Azerbaijan have already agreed upon and initialed in the text of the agreement on establishing peace and interstate relations between the two countries.

The signing and ratification of that agreement, which was initialed at the Washington Peace Summit, is the next major topic in the joint agenda of Armenia and Azerbaijan, and we will consistently continue to work in this direction.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The balanced and balancing foreign policy adopted by Armenia stems from the logic of multipolarity, which is one of the key principles of the United Nations.

In recent years, we have established strategic relations with Georgia, France, China, the Netherlands, Kazakhstan, Germany, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, the United States of America and the European Union.

Today, by the way, the European Commission approved the decision to adopt autonomous trade measures for Armenia, which is yet another manifestation of the new quality of Armenia-EU relations.

Our relations with Russia are in a transformation phase, and this is a natural process because throughout the entire preceding period, the largest factor influencing relations between Armenia and Russia was the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict.

Now that we have established peace with Azerbaijan, Armenia-Russia relations will naturally change, and it is our desire that these relations develop on the basis of the principles of friendship and mutual respect.

We will, of course, continue to develop our relations with partners located closer to or farther from Armenia.

And in this regard, I would like to highlight the countries of Central Asia, with which our relations are also highly dynamic.

But I also cannot but emphasize that the normalization and deepening of relations with our neighbors are nevertheless of key importance for our foreign policy vision.

I have already spoken about the dynamics of our relations with Azerbaijan.

We have a high-level dialogue with Turkey.

And I want to confirm the words expressed by President Erdoğan from this podium the other day, that we are resolutely pushing forward the process of normalizing Armenia-Turkey relations.

Our relations with our two other neighbors, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Georgia, remain of exceptional importance to us, and our good neighborliness continues to develop and deepen.

The Republic of Armenia considers its contribution to the region’s stability and development to be our key task in international peace, stability and development.

Honorable President of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly,

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

This October, Armenia will host the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, COP17, and I invite you all to participate in this very important event for Armenia and for the international biodiversity agenda.

Dear ladies and gentlemen,

This is what I wanted to share with you in my speech today.

Thank you for your attention.