Uzbekistan has opened the inaugural Silk Road Finance & Technology Forum in Tashkent with an ambitious programme of fintech investment, regulatory reform and cross-border cooperation aimed at positioning the country as a financial technology hub for Central Asia.The three-day gathering, running from August 24 to 26, has brought together more than 4,000 participants from over 75 countries, including central bankers, investors, technology companies, start-up founders and financial institutions. The forum is being organised by the Central Bank of the Republic of Uzbekistan with the Global Finance & Technology Network, a Singapore-headquartered organisation established by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Jamshid Kuchkarov opened the main programme alongside Central Bank Chairman Timur Ishmetov. Discussions have focused on open banking, digital assets, stablecoins, cross-border payments, artificial intelligence, cyber resilience, Islamic finance and venture capital.
The event forms part of a wider strategy to accelerate Uzbekistan’s fintech industry through 2030. Authorities have set targets including attracting $1 billion in foreign investment, training more than 5,000 specialists, creating more than 200 licensed market participants and supporting at least 100 start-ups through incubation programmes.
A central element of the strategy is a dedicated $50 million venture fund intended to improve access to capital for fintech companies. The Central Bank is also developing Regulatory Sandbox 2.0, designed to allow companies to test financial products and business models under regulatory supervision before wider market deployment.
Another initiative, the QFinex Quantum Test Bed, is intended to provide an experimental environment for advanced financial technologies. Regulatory work is simultaneously advancing in open banking, Buy Now Pay Later services, digital payments and cyber resilience.
Digital currencies and stable tokens are also being considered for pilot projects, placing Uzbekistan among a growing group of economies examining how blockchain-based assets and central bank digital currency technologies could be incorporated into regulated financial systems.
The government sees its demographic profile as an advantage. Uzbekistan has a population exceeding 37 million, with a large proportion under 30, while digital adoption is approaching 70 per cent. Central Asia as a whole has more than 80 million people, giving financial technology providers a sizeable market where banking and payment services are moving rapidly towards mobile platforms.
Cross-border integration has emerged as another theme of the forum. Central bank officials from Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan discussed linking financial and fintech ecosystems, including cooperation on national fintech strategies, innovation infrastructure, venture financing and support mechanisms for technology companies.
Talks with the National Bank of Cambodia covered central bank digital currencies, QR-based payments, financial inclusion and greater interoperability between payment systems. The two institutions subsequently signed a memorandum designed to broaden cooperation in payment systems, monetary policy, research and financial inclusion.
Uzbekistan has also been exploring ways to improve international remittances and digital financial services. Discussions with Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas examined opportunities to make cross-border payments more accessible and efficient, while strengthening regulatory cooperation and research.
Islamic finance has become another major strand of the country’s financial-sector expansion. Authorities are preparing rules covering Islamic banks and Islamic banking windows, alongside a specialised taxation framework and a two-tier Shariah governance structure involving oversight at central bank and commercial bank level.
Talks with Bank Negara Malaysia focused on Malaysia’s experience of regulating Islamic finance and building a system covering banking, capital markets and Shariah supervision. Uzbekistan is also working with the Islamic Financial Services Board on prudential regulation, liquidity-management instruments and implementation of international standards.
Artificial intelligence and cyber security have featured prominently as financial institutions confront the risks created by increasingly automated payments. Sessions have examined fraud detection, resilience of payment rails and governance requirements for AI-driven financial services, reflecting concerns that faster transactions require equally rapid monitoring and security systems.
The programme also brings investors and start-ups together through dedicated founder meetings and investment sessions, seeking to turn regulatory reforms into commercial activity rather than limiting the forum to policy discussions.
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