Armenia has 17 licensed banks on the Central Bank of Armenia register, and for non-residents they differ mainly in ownership and published procedures for opening an account without a branch visit. A few belong to foreign groups, and two fall under US sanctions together with their parents. The choice depends on three criteria: the availability of remote opening, the owner's policy in addition to Armenian law, and the amount of the balance covered by the deposit guarantee.
Deposit protection depends on the currency. The Deposit Guarantee Fund of Armenia covers deposits of individuals, including individual entrepreneurs, automatically from the moment of placement: up to AMD 16,000,000 for a deposit held only in drams and up to AMD 7,000,000 for a deposit held only in foreign currency, with a separate formula for mixed deposits. At the Central Bank of Armenia's September 2026 rate of about AMD 364 to the dollar, that is roughly USD 44,000 in drams and USD 19,000 in dollars or euros. Company deposits are outside the scheme.
What an Armenian account is for
An Armenian account is a working account for someone who lives, owns property or runs a business in Armenia. It pays in drams, holds dollars, euros, roubles and other currencies alongside them, and serves as the operating account of an Armenian sole proprietorship or company. Armenia is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, so trade and payments with the other members run through Armenian banks as a matter of course.
Armenian accounts are poorly suited to holding large foreign-currency balances. The guarantee on a dollar deposit is less than half the guarantee on a dram deposit, and every dollar above it is an unsecured claim on one bank. Dollar payments leave the country through US correspondent banks, so checks by banks on cross-border payments take place partly outside Armenia.
Restrictions and deposit-protection limits
- Sanctions status. A person or entity on US, EU or UK lists will not pass onboarding at a bank that needs dollar or euro correspondents, which covers every bank relevant to this page.
- No link to Armenia and no wish to travel. The one published remote route asks for an Armenian link or a deposit; without either, the practical route is a branch visit.
- Company deposit protection. Legal entities are outside the guarantee scheme; a company balance is protected only by the bank's own soundness.
- Large foreign-currency savings in one bank. Above AMD 7,000,000 in foreign currency, the excess is exposed.
Ownership of nine banks
The bank's Armenian licence and its ownership are separate matters. Direct shareholdings, an ultimate parent and an individual beneficial owner are different facts. Published ownership helps identify group policies and sanctions exposures, but does not by itself establish that a particular non-resident or payment will be accepted.
| Bank | Owner type | Owner | What it means for a non-resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ameriabank | foreign financial group | 2025 year-end shareholdings: Lion Finance Group PLC 60%, Bank of Georgia JSC 30%, EBRD 10%; parent Lion Finance Group | a dedicated accounts section for non-citizens of Armenia |
| Ardshinbank | private; Armenian holding | Arins Group LLC 98.918067%; the bank identifies Karen Safaryan as beneficial owner | universal retail and corporate bank |
| Inecobank | private; disclosed direct and indirect holders | INECO GROUP 34.98%, Karen Safaryan 34.58%; other direct holders are disclosed separately; Avetis Baloyan holds indirect significant interests | universal retail and SME bank |
| Evocabank | Armenian private | Mareta Gevorkyan (100%) | a published remote route for eligible non-residents: documents by email, identification by video call |
| IDBank | private; ID financial group | ID Group CJSC 100%; the bank also discloses Lala Bakhshetsyan as an indirect significant participant | published remote banking terms for app and online banking |
| Converse Bank | foreign group | Advanced Global Investments (72.89%; ultimate owner Martín Eurnekian) | private international holding; policy set by the owner's group |
| Byblos Bank Armenia | foreign group | Byblos Bank group (Lebanon) | group policy of a Lebanese parent |
| VTB Bank (Armenia) | subsidiary of a sanctioned parent | VTB Bank (Russia) | named by the US Treasury among the VTB subsidiaries under full blocking sanctions on 24 February 2022; dollar and euro correspondent access is the constraint |
| Mellat Bank | subsidiary of a sanctioned parent | Bank Mellat (Iran) | Bank Mellat, its branches and subsidiaries designated by the US Treasury in 2007; unsuitable as an account for international payments |
Bank selection involves three considerations. The first concerns the actual onboarding procedure and price: Evocabank publishes remote terms, while the other listed banks' opening procedures need checking for the applicant. Second, foreign ownership takes different forms: Ameriabank belongs to London-listed Lion Finance Group, Converse is controlled through a private holding and Byblos belongs to a Lebanese banking group. The parent group's listing or nationality does not turn the Armenian bank account into an account licensed in the parent's home jurisdiction. Third, the two subsidiaries of sanctioned parents are a separate category. Their deposits are covered by the same Armenian guarantee, but a bank that is blocked by the US, directly or through its parent, faces the greatest difficulty maintaining dollar correspondents, and a client who needs to pay abroad in dollars or euros seeks an alternative.
The remote route: what Evocabank asks for
The Evocabank page for non-resident clients publishes the remote-opening procedure. The documents go by email, identification takes place by video call, and after approval the client transfers at least USD 50 to activate the account. For individuals the page lists links to Armenia that the bank expects: ownership of Armenian real estate, readiness to place a deposit of up to six months and up to USD 20,000, EUR 20,000, RUB 1,500,000 or AMD 10,000,000, registration as an Armenian sole proprietor, or a shareholding in an Armenian company. Documents include the passport and proof of source of income, such as the previous year's tax return or a sale, lease or securities agreement.
| Evocabank remote tariff | Individuals | Legal entities |
|---|---|---|
| Account opening | AMD 50,000 | AMD 100,000 |
| Annual service | AMD 250,000 | AMD 500,000 |
| Incoming and outgoing transfers | 0.5% | 0.5% |
| Account currencies | USD, EUR, RUB, AED, GBP, CHF, CNY, CAD | USD, EUR, RUB, AED, GBP, CHF, CNY, CAD |
Remote opening involves higher charges. AMD 250,000 a year is roughly USD 690, and 0.5% on each incoming and outgoing transfer makes the route expensive for an account that moves money often. It fits a person with an Armenian link who wants the account in place before arriving, or who does not live in Armenia and uses the account occasionally.
Bank selection by client profile
| Profile | First account | Second account |
|---|---|---|
| Owns property or a share in a company in Armenia, does not live there | Evocabank remote route | — |
| Moves to Armenia, needs a local card and dram payments | a bank without a sanctioned parent, at a branch (Ameriabank, Ardshinbank, Inecobank) | a second such bank once the savings exceed the guarantee |
| Armenian sole proprietor or company | an Armenian bank after registration | Evocabank for remote management by a non-resident director |
| Needs dollar and euro payments abroad | an Armenian bank without a sanctioned parent | account outside Armenia for the euro leg |
| Savings above USD 19,000 in foreign currency | split across two or three banks | part of the balance in drams, where the guarantee is higher, if currency risk is acceptable |
Worked example. A family moving to Yerevan holds USD 60,000 in cash savings. In one bank, a dollar deposit is guaranteed up to AMD 7,000,000 — about USD 19,000 — and roughly USD 41,000 is an unsecured claim on that bank. Split across three banks in dollars, the guarantees cover about USD 58,000. Converting USD 40,000 into drams and holding it in one bank brings it inside the AMD 16,000,000 dram limit, but at the price of dram exchange-rate risk and conversion costs both ways. For a family planning to leave within a few years, the split in dollars is usually the simpler answer.
Cost, timing and tax
Branch-based banks price accounts through their tariff books and packages; for a non-resident the main cost at a branch is the time to assemble a source-of-funds file that the bank reviews before opening. The remote route is the most expensive per year.
An Armenian account does not by itself make its holder an Armenian tax resident. Armenia takes part in the automatic exchange of financial account information under the Common Reporting Standard, so an account held by a tax resident of another participating country is reported to that country.
Common account-selection and use errors
- Holding foreign-currency savings in one bank. The dollar and euro guarantee is less than half the dram guarantee.
- Relying on the guarantee for a company balance. The scheme covers individuals, including individual entrepreneurs, not legal entities.
- Treating the remote route as unconditional. Evocabank expects a link to Armenia or a deposit and a source-of-income document; the video call comes only after the file is accepted.
- Choosing a bank without checking its parent. A subsidiary of a sanctioned parent carries the parent's correspondent constraints into every foreign payment.
- Underestimating transfer costs. 0.5% in and 0.5% out on the remote tariff quickly exceeds the annual fee for an active account.
Q/A
Opening and deposit protection
Can a non-resident open an Armenian bank account without travelling?
Yes, at Evocabank, which publishes a remote route: documents by email, identification by video call, activation with a transfer of at least USD 50. The bank expects a link to Armenia — property, a sole proprietorship, a shareholding — or a deposit of up to six months, and a source-of-income document.
How much of a deposit in an Armenian bank is protected?
For individuals, including individual entrepreneurs, up to AMD 16,000,000 for a deposit held only in drams and up to AMD 7,000,000 for a deposit held only in foreign currency, per bank, with a separate formula for mixed deposits. Company deposits are not covered.
Are foreign-currency deposits covered?
Yes, but with a lower limit: AMD 7,000,000, about USD 19,000. The dollar value of the protection moves with the exchange rate.
Costs, reporting and ownership
What does the remote route cost?
At Evocabank, AMD 50,000 to open and AMD 250,000 a year for individuals, AMD 100,000 and AMD 500,000 for legal entities, plus 0.5% on incoming and outgoing transfers. Closing the account is free.
Does Armenia exchange account information with other countries?
Yes. Armenia participates in the automatic exchange under the Common Reporting Standard, so an account held by a tax resident of another participating country is reported to that country.
Why does the owner of an Armenian bank matter?
Because the owner determines the policies that apply in addition to Armenian law and which correspondents the bank can retain. Two banks on the register, VTB Bank (Armenia) and Mellat Bank, fall under US sanctions together with their parents, which limits their dollar and euro payments regardless of the client.