Uzbek fintech Uzum planning IPO in 2027

MOSCOW. Oct 17 (Interfax) - Uzbek fintech and e-commerce provider Uzum is planning an IPO in 2027 and considering London, New York, Hong Kong and Abu Dhabi as possible venues, the company's founder, Nikolai Seleznev, told Reuters.

The agency said Uzum, which secured $70 million in equity financing led by China's Tencent (SPB: 700) and U.S. firm VR Capital in August, was valued at $1.5 billion. That makes it the first "unicorn" start-up in Uzbekistan, which with around 37 million people is now the second most populous former Soviet state after Russia.

Seleznev told the agency it was too soon to comment on a target price for its IPO, planned for 2027, but he added: "If we were to list on the London Stock Exchange, we would definitely be considering the FTSE 100."

In addition to the London option, the bank is considering Nasdaq, Abu Dhabi, where it already has a presence, and Hong Kong, where following Tencent's investment it is now receiving a lot of interest, Seleznev said.

He said Uzum also received investor interest from the Middle East and Britain in its latest funding round.

Uzum has expanded rapidly in Uzbekistan since its founding in 2022, with 17 million Uzbek residents using its services every month.

"I'm against doing geographical expansion too fast. We want to properly win and dominate the home market, to demonstrate to potential partners that we're capable of building a system that would outperform not only here, but somewhere else," Seleznev told the agency.