Armenia’s 17 operating banks posted record-high profits in 2025, generating a combined net profit of 421 billion drams, around $1.1 billion, according to interim financial statements analyzed by the Armenian investigative outlet Hetq. Armenia’s 1,000 largest taxpayers also paid more than $5.1 billion in taxes last year, marking a nearly 16% year-on-year increase, based on the latest annual Top Taxpayers list published by Armenian customs authorities.
Based on these reports, Hetq found that compared to 2024, the net profit of Armenia’s banking system increased by 60 billion drams, or approximately 17%.
According to 2025 data, the largest net profit was recorded by Ardshinbank CJSC, which earned 137 billion drams. Compared to the previous year, the bank’s profit increased by 4.4 billion drams, or 3%.
The combined profits of the next three banks equal Ardshinbank’s profit alone.
Ameriabank CJSC ranks second, with nearly 73 billion drams in net profit and a 21% increase year-on-year. Third place is held by Acba Bank CJSC, with 36 billion drams in net profit, reflecting a 26% increase.
For reference, based on full-year 2024 data, the top three banks by net profit were Ardshinbank, Ameriabank, and Inecobank. In 2025, Inecobank CJSC dropped to fourth place, followed by Evocabank CJSC.
Overall, all banks ended 2025 with profits. Only Araratbank CJSC recorded a decline in net profit, while all other banks increased theirs. In absolute terms, the largest profit growth was recorded by Ameriabank, while in percentage terms, AMIO Bank CJSC showed the highest increase.
In 2024, Armenia’s banks together posted 363 billion drams (around $923 million) in profit. Armenia’s banking sector has grown rapidly since 2022. Until then, the net profit of Armenia’s banking system had never exceeded 90 billion drams annually. Experts linked the increase to the outbreak of the Russia–Ukraine war, which led to a significant inflow of foreign capital into Armenia.
Banks feature prominently among the largest taxpayers. Ardshinbank, Armenia’s biggest lender and most profitable bank in 2025, ranked among the top contributors to the state budget, alongside companies from the energy, mining, tobacco, and consumer goods sectors. Analysts note that while tax payments are not a direct measure of profits, their scale indicates the growing role of the banking sector in Armenia’s fiscal revenues.
The list was topped by Mobile Center, the country’s largest electronics retailer, which paid nearly $206 million in taxes, about 53% more than the year before. It was followed by Grand Tobacco, which paid around $175 million. Armenia’s largest mining company, the Zangezur Copper-Molybdenum Combine, fell to third place with just under $138 million, down sharply from approximately $255 million in 2024, for reasons that were not immediately clear.
Economists say the changing composition of the Top Taxpayers list mirrors recent shifts in Armenia’s economy. While mining, energy, and tobacco companies traditionally dominated the rankings, recent years have seen a growing presence of banks, consumer-oriented businesses, and technology firms, reflecting rising profits in sectors linked to domestic demand and financial services.
The sharp increase in Mobile Center’s tax payments was most likely driven by the re-export of electronic equipment from Armenia to Russia.
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Armenia, while not the only country playing this role, has been among the transit routes used for trade between the West and Russia.
After several European countries and the United States imposed bans on the export of a wide range of goods to Russia, trade flows were partially rerouted through intermediary countries, including Armenia.
Overall, in 2025 Armenia collected about $7.2 billion in tax revenues, a 20% increase compared to the previous year, with the country’s 1,000 largest taxpayers accounting for roughly 70% of total tax revenues. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has described improved tax collection as a key priority for his administration.
