The Central Bank of Armenia considers it a serious challenge that consumers perceive loans solely as cash, and not as a commitment, said the head of the Consumer Rights Protection and Financial Education Center of the Armenian Central Bank Armenuhi Mkrtchyan on Friday.

According to him, some of the challenges are not purely Armenian specific, but are characteristic of many other countries.

“For example, one of the problems that we constantly encounter is the consumer’s behavioral perception that lending is carried out only within the financial institution and the state, and the consumer himself does not bear any responsibility for this obligation ... The consumer often cares more about the present than about the future, and as a result, for example, prefers to consume today, rather than save in the long run. We also see that consumers often spend credit inappropriately,” he said.