IMF Staff Country Reports

In the context of Uzbekistan’s transition to a market-based economy, the authorities have undertaken several reform measures that strengthened banking supervision. Starting in 2019, a new central bank law enhanced the independence of the Central Bank of Uzbekistan (CBU) and set price and banking sector stability as its mandate. In 2020, the Government of Uzbekistan’s (GoU) Banking Sector Reform Strategy laid the foundation for privatizing many state-owned commercial banks (SOCBs) and changing their operating model towards a commercially orientated and competitive system. In December 2023, the CBU Board of Directors adopted the Guidelines on Risk-Based Supervision (GRBS). As of November 2024, additional legislations1 have been drafted and are under consideration by the Parliament: i) to establish the Financial Stability Board and designate the CBU as the new Resolution Authority; and ii) to extend the deposit insurance system from physical persons to legal entities, introduce a limit to the protection of deposits (UZS 200 MN), and gradually reduce the term for the possible compensation to depositors (up to seven days).