A Deposit Insurance System for Armenia

We provide an overview of the design for a system of official deposit guarantees for the Republic of Armenia. This proposed design takes into consideration the overall structure of the Armenian economy, its official institutions and the financial system. Furthermore, we outline specific design features for the Armenian deposit insurance system that are consistent with the social welfare objectives that underpin arguments for its adoption, while minimizing the distortions of these government guarantees on incentives. Key among the design features are limited coverage of deposits, separation of deposit insurance from central banking, and extended liability of banks for losses incurred by the deposit insurance fund.