Central Bank unveils new program to support small and medium-sized businesses through 2030
Business loan portfolio to double, collateral for loans reduced to 25%
The Central Bank of Uzbekistan has approved the pilot "Concept for Supporting Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (SMB) for 2026–2030." The document, which consolidates 25 comprehensive initiatives, aims to demonopolize lending and transition to financing based on digitalization, competition, and market mechanisms.
The main benchmark of the strategy is to double the total SMB loan portfolio to 436 trillion Uzbekistani soms by 2030 (currently 218 trillion soms), increasing its share in the country's GDP from 12% to 20%.
Today, small and medium-sized businesses account for 50.5% of the country's GDP, 74% of the workforce (10.5 million people), and nearly half of national exports. However, according to World Bank estimates, only 10% of small and 16% of medium-sized enterprises have access to bank loans.
The most interesting and groundbreaking innovations of the concept
Loans in an hour and utility-based scoring. The coverage of SMBs with reliable credit histories is planned to reach 80%, and 60% of microloans will be processed online, reducing application review time to just one hour. Banks will be required to explain the reasons for loan denials, and risk assessment will be permitted using alternative data—from tax payments and utility bills to revenue on trading platforms.
Banks to assist with accounting. Legislation will establish the right of commercial banks to provide entrepreneurs with consulting, legal, tax, and accounting services. The regulator emphasizes that a significant portion of rejections is not due to companies' insolvency but rather poorly prepared applications.
25% collateral and electronic auctions. During an open dialogue between the President and entrepreneurs, the introduction of a counter-guarantee system was announced: for loans up to 10 billion soms, businesses will only need to provide collateral of 25%. The contractual value of collateral will become the starting price in electronic auctions, and encumbrance removals will occur automatically after debt repayment.
Launch of Islamic financing. The Central Bank is preparing a legislative framework to launch pilot "Islamic windows" in existing banks, with subsequent expansion of licensing. The tax code will be adapted to eliminate double taxation in chains of property rights transfers.
Protection from risks and currency fluctuations. Uzbekistan will establish a National Hedging Company to protect businesses from currency fluctuations, as well as introduce the institution of a financial ombudsman for pre-trial dispute resolution between financial institutions and micro-enterprises.
Transformation of state banks and microfinancing. The share of state financial institutions in SMB lending will decrease from 73% to 65% (and to 55% if one of the major state banks is privatized). Meanwhile, the share of non-bank and microfinance organizations (MFOs) is expected to grow from 1.7% to 5%. The Business Development Bank will be transformed into a single institution for long-term SMB financing, which will attract resources from international financial institutions on general prudential terms.
