Central Bank of Uzbekistan issues country's first license for Islamic banking operations

TASHKENT. Oct 26 (Interfax) - The Central Bank of Uzbekistan has issued the country's first license to carry out Islamic banking activity, the bank said in a statement.

The license was received by Open Bank.

As reported, a law regulating the application of Islamic banking came into force in Uzbekistan in June 2026, which defines the types of Islamic financial operations, the licensing requirements for banks and the specific aspects of their taxation.

In October 2025, Central Bank Deputy Governor Abrorkhodja Turdaliev said that ten Islamic banks were expected to open in the country by 2030, while three state banks would create "Islamic windows." At a meeting with the Uzbek president in March 2026, plans were also announced to open an "Islamic window" in at least one commercial bank and to create two banks operating fully on the principles of Islamic banking.

Open Bank (formerly Smart Bank) is a digital bank providing banking services to legal entities and individuals through remote service channels.

The bank received its license to operate in December 2022, carried out a rebranding in June 2025 and changed its name from Smart Bank to Open Bank. The bank's main shareholder is Future Open Technology Group (85.1%). The bank's assets as of October 1, 2026, total 1.8 trillion sum, and its charter capital amounts to 500 billion sum.

The official exchange rate on October 26 is 11,939 sum/$1.