Armen Darbinyan was born in Gyumri

Gyumri

Gyumri is the capital and largest city of the Shirak Province in northwest Armenia. It is located about 120 km from the capital Yerevan, and, with a population of 168,918 , is the second-largest city in Armenia.The name of the city has been changed many times in history...

, Armenia

Armenia

Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

 on January 23, 1965. In 1986, he received an honors degree at the Department of Economy, Moscow State University

Moscow State University

Lomonosov Moscow State University , previously known as Lomonosov University or MSU , is the largest university in Russia. Founded in 1755, it also claims to be one of the oldest university in Russia and to have the tallest educational building in the world. Its current rector is Viktor Sadovnichiy...

. In 1989, Darbinyan completed a post-graduate course at Moscow State University. In 1994, he was appointed First Vice-Chairman of the Central Bank of Armenia

Central Bank of Armenia

The Central Bank of Armenia is the central bank of Armenia with its headquarters in Yerevan. The CBA is an independent institution responsible for issuing all banknotes and coins in the country, overseeing and regulating the banking sector and keeping the government's currency reserves...

. In 1997 Darbinyan was appointed Armenian Minister of Finance. On April 10, 1998, he was appointed Armenian Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Armenia

The Prime Minister of Armenia is the most senior minister within the Armenian government, and is required by the constitution to "oversee the Government's regular activities and coordinate the work of the Ministers." The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of Armenia, but can be removed by...

 until June 11, 1999. Since 2001, Armen Darbinyan has been rector of Russian-Armenian State University.

Darbinyan has been recognised as a "Young World Leader" by the World Economic Forum.