Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — The Central Bank of Uzbekistan has developed a Concept for Supporting Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) for 2026–2030, outlining 25 interconnected initiatives aimed at expanding access to finance and strengthening the business sector. One of its key targets is to double the SME loan portfolio from its current 218 trillion soums by 2030 and increase the share of loans to small and medium-sized businesses in GDP from 12% to 20%, the Central Bank of Uzbekistan said.
The concept aims to establish an SME financing system based on market principles, competition and digital data by 2030. The system is intended to expand entrepreneurs' access to financial resources while maintaining financial and price stability. The document has been approved on a pilot basis and will be reviewed annually in light of the results achieved and changes in market conditions.
The strategy is built around three main objectives: sustainable business growth, equal access to financing and financial system stability. Financing should correspond to each company's stage of development, helping microbusinesses grow into small enterprises and small businesses develop into medium-sized companies.
Access to financing should depend on a business's economic viability rather than its location, the gender or age of its owner, or the availability of collateral. At the same time, lending expansion must take place while banks continue to comply with prudential requirements.
The concept also establishes several other targets for 2030. The share of state-owned financial institutions in SME lending is expected to decline from 73% to 65%, or to 55% if one of the major state-owned banks is privatized. The share of non-bank credit organizations in total lending is to increase from 1.7% to 5%.
The proportion of SMEs covered by reliable credit information is expected to rise from 68% to 80%. Online microloans should account for 60% of all microcredit lending, while the average time required to issue them is to be reduced to one hour. The Central Bank also plans to expand access to financial services for businesses without a credit history.
According to the regulator, implementation of the concept is expected to benefit three groups: entrepreneurs, the financial system and government programmes.
Businesses will gain access to a wider range of financing sources and financial products, simpler lending procedures and more transparent financial services. Particular attention will be given to entrepreneurs with limited credit histories or insufficient traditional collateral, as well as businesses operating in the regions.
For the financial system, the expected outcomes include stronger competition between banks and non-bank financial institutions, improved risk assessment and lower lending and monitoring costs. The concept also предусматривает the introduction of more effective systems for early identification of loans at risk of becoming non-performing.
Government programmes are expected to benefit from more targeted resource allocation based on a unified database, coordinated monitoring and common performance criteria.
Of the 25 initiatives, 17 concern institutional measures, five focus on financial infrastructure and three involve the development of financial products. Institutional measures have been given priority in terms of implementation timelines, as they are intended to establish the legal framework needed to move infrastructure and product initiatives beyond the pilot stage.
One of the institutional initiatives involves transforming the Business Development Bank. The plan envisages bringing together long-term SME financing, the mobilization of resources from international financial institutions and the distribution of targeted funding through financial intermediaries within a single system.
Regardless of the model selected, the institution will be subject to prudential regulation and supervision under the same general rules as other financial institutions. Commercial operations and government support measures will be accounted for separately, while the amount of subsidies provided will be disclosed.
The concept also proposes establishing a financial ombudsman to resolve disputes between financial institutions and businesses outside the courts. The ombudsman's mandate is expected to cover not only consumers but also micro and small enterprises.
Amendments to legislation are also planned to allow banks to provide accounting, tax, legal and consulting services. According to the document, a significant proportion of loan rejections involving micro and small businesses is attributable not to a lack of business viability but to poorly prepared loan applications.
Another initiative focuses on establishing a methodological framework for Islamic finance, covering regulation, accounting, risk management and supervision. Licensing will begin with pilot banks, including Islamic windows within existing banks, before being extended to a larger number of institutions.
The concept also предусматривает measures to ensure tax neutrality and eliminate double taxation on transactions involving successive transfers of ownership.
The role of microfinance organizations in business financing is also expected to expand. Resources from the Apex Fund will be allocated to these organizations through competitive selection based on transparent criteria, including portfolio quality, risk management systems and coverage of rural areas.
In addition, guarantee products will be developed to enable microfinance institutions to obtain loans from commercial banks.
The institutional measures also include establishing an innovation hub as a structural unit within the Central Bank's Department for Financial Technology Development.
The regulator plans to improve communication with businesses on inflation and monetary policy and publish quarterly analytical reports on SME conditions across different industries and regions. The reports will be made available on the Central Bank's website.
The Central Bank also intends to use big data to model the behaviour of economic agents, assess the SME financing gap and develop support mechanisms for businesses in specific industries.
Another proposed measure concerns the valuation of collateral. The value agreed upon by the parties would be used as the starting price at an auction. Legislation will establish the right of the parties to agree on the collateral's value in writing, with the starting price automatically generated by the electronic auction system.
According to the document, lengthy collateral enforcement procedures and unpredictable sale prices increase the discounts banks apply to collateral valuations, thereby reducing the volume of credit available to businesses.
To develop the market for currency risk hedging, the concept proposes establishing a National Hedging Company and introducing a customer-bank-company model. The company will provide continuous quotations for derivative financial instruments in the domestic foreign exchange and money markets.
The strategy also предусматривает the introduction of a counter-guarantee system. During an open dialogue between the President of Uzbekistan and entrepreneurs on 18 August 2026, it was announced that businesses taking out loans of up to 10 billion soums would only need to provide collateral worth 25% of the loan amount.
The concept proposes allowing exporters selling goods through overseas trading houses, consignment warehouses and distribution networks to repatriate export proceeds within the periods specified in their contracts, instead of the current 180-calendar-day deadline.
The rationale for this measure will be assessed by the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade, the Tax Committee, the Customs Committee, the Agency for Technical Regulation and the Central Bank.
The strategy also предусматривает a transition to an expanded interagency regulatory sandbox operating under a one-stop-shop principle. A programme called "2,000 Exporting Enterprises" will be launched for medium-sized businesses that already export products or have export potential.
The five financial infrastructure initiatives are aimed at reducing information asymmetry in SME financing.
One of them involves creating a centralized digital platform for recording, valuing, enforcing and selling collateral and distressed assets. The platform will be integrated with banks and marketplaces through APIs. Restrictions on collateral registered on the platform will be automatically lifted once all obligations have been fulfilled.
A post-monitoring and early-warning system will also be established. It will track indicators such as the number of jobs created, revenue trends, timely tax payments and changes in borrowers' financial performance.
Open banking will be introduced in stages. A testing environment will be launched first, followed by API connections with commercial banks and payment organizations. Non-bank credit organizations are expected to join at a later stage.
With customers' consent, businesses will be able to share verified information about transactions in their accounts at other banks with potential lenders.
Another initiative involves developing a credit-scoring model based on alternative data, including tax records, payment transactions, sales information and utility payments. Borrowers will also be entitled to request an explanation for loan rejections.
The digital marketplace for SME financial services will receive a mobile version and be expanded to include non-bank financial institutions and fintech companies. Loan terms will be disclosed together with the total cost of financing.
The three product-related initiatives concern pre-export financing, expanding the range of financial products and developing international factoring.
In cooperation with commercial banks, new products will be developed, including loans with seasonal repayment schedules, revolving credit facilities for working capital, financing secured by equipment and inventory, and products for businesses without collateral.
To support international factoring, the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade will establish a guarantee organization under the Trade Development Company JSC.
The organization will issue guarantees with recourse of up to the equivalent of 10 billion soums, subject to a maximum of 50% of the value of the factoring transaction.
Until 1 January 2029, the company will compensate 50% of the discount or accrued interest on international factoring transactions, within a limit of 4% per annum.
In cooperation with the National Agency for Prospective Projects, a standard insurance product will also be developed, with a simplified compensation procedure in cases where a foreign debtor fails to meet its obligations.
The document also provides an overview of the current state of the SME sector in Uzbekistan.
According to the National Statistics Committee, as of 1 January 2026, small enterprises and microfirms accounted for 403,800, or 85%, of the country's 474,900 operating enterprises and organizations.
As of 1 July 2026, the number of small business entities, including individual entrepreneurs, dehkan farms and artisans, had reached 1.2361 million. This included 526,700 microfirms, 375,100 individual entrepreneurs, 334,400 dehkan farms, 23,200 artisans and 5,100 family enterprises.
In the first half of 2026, small businesses accounted for 50.5% of GDP, generating 518.7 trillion soums in added value. During this period, 44,000 new small enterprises and microfirms were established.
SME exports totalled US$7.48 billion, representing 47.2% of the country's total exports, while imports amounted to US$13 billion, or 51.8% of the national total.
In 2025, the sector employed approximately 74% of the workforce, or around 10.5 million people. However, the share of small businesses in GDP declined from 53.8% in 2023 to 52.2% in 2025.
According to the World Bank's 2025 assessment, only 10% of small enterprises and 16% of medium-sized enterprises have access to credit.
As of 1 July 2026, the banking system's loan portfolio stood at 642.8 trillion soums, including 407 trillion soums in loans to legal entities.
Factoring services totalled 5.2 trillion soums, of which 0.6 trillion soums involved international factoring. Active credit accounts were held by 24% of SME entities, while 68% were registered with the credit bureau.
The World Bank estimates that less than 30% of SME sales in Uzbekistan are conducted electronically. It also puts demand for equity capital in the country at US$20–30 billion, compared with approximately US$2 billion in combined commitments by private equity funds operating in Uzbekistan.
In 2026, Uzbekistan plans to allocate 140 trillion soums in loans to support SMEs under instructions from the President.
In 37 economically lagging districts, loans under the family entrepreneurship programme are being issued at an interest rate of 12%, compared with the standard rate of 17.5%.
In 562 mahallas located in border and enclave areas, the maximum loan amount for projects is being increased to 1 billion soums. An additional 2 trillion soums is also being allocated to family entrepreneurship programmes on top of the previously planned 3.6 trillion soums.
In developing the concept, the Central Bank studied the experience of Germany's KfW, the British Business Bank, India's Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund (KODIT).
The review also covered approaches adopted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups of the Republic of Korea, Japan's Small and Medium Enterprise Agency under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and Brazil's Ministry of Entrepreneurship, Microenterprise and Small Business.
