OMM Newsroom
Uzbekistan is entering a new phase in the development of Islamic finance. Days after the country issued its first Islamic banking licence, a forum bringing together representatives of the region’s financial sector was held in Samarkand.
At the Samarkand Islamic Finance Forum, participants discussed practical issues including regulation, corporate governance, liquidity management, professional training and financial literacy, AnewZ reported. The Central Bank of Uzbekistan organised the event jointly with Malaysia’s INCEIF University and Al Muamalat Consulting.
Several days before the forum, Uzbekistan issued its first Islamic banking licence to Open Bank. A decision adopted by the Central Bank on October 23 allows the bank to offer Islamic financial services through an Islamic window.
The move followed the adoption of Uzbekistan’s law on Islamic banking in March 2026. The law established a legal basis for six types of Islamic finance transactions, including murabaha, mudaraba, musharaka, ijara, salam and wakala.
Officials say the legislation is only a starting point. “Despite the legal framework, we are working on the regulatory mechanism, the Sharia governance framework, financial literacy and human capital development,” Umidjon Yorqulov, head of the working group at the Central Bank of Uzbekistan’s Islamic Finance Project Office, told AnewZ.
Other commercial banks are also making preparations, Yorqulov said, adding that Uzbekistan expects to receive new applications for Islamic banking licences.
Key issues for Islamic finance development
The forum’s programme featured seven panel discussions covering the development of Islamic finance in Central Asia, corporate governance, Sharia compliance, liquidity management, Islamic capital markets, vocational training and financial literacy.
One urgent issue identified by the Central Bank of Uzbekistan is developing instruments that would enable Islamic banks to manage liquidity. The forum also highlighted the need to train qualified specialists. As the sector expands, banks will need professionals familiar with both conventional financial mechanisms and the specific principles of Islamic finance.
Market prospects in Central Asia
According to a joint study by the Islamic Development Bank Institute, the Eurasian Development Bank and the London Stock Exchange Group, Islamic banks’ assets in Central Asia could reach $2.5 billion by 2028 and $6.3 billion by 2033. The sukuk market is also projected to grow to $5.6 billion by 2033. Sukuk is the Arabic term for financial certificates.
Kazakhstan currently leads the development of Islamic finance in Central Asia and ranks 19th globally. Kyrgyzstan has the region’s highest level of Islamic finance penetration, with one fully operational Islamic bank and several conventional banks offering Islamic windows.
Uzbekistan aims to become another major market in the region. Under government plans, two fully fledged Islamic banks are to be established in the country between 2026 and 2030, while conventional banks will be allowed to open Islamic windows.
Monzer Kahf, a professor of Islamic finance and economics at Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University, told AnewZ that the sector’s defining feature is its connection to real economic activity. “The essence of Islamic banking and finance is a direct and very strong link between finance and the real market of production and exchange,” Kahf said.
He said Islamic finance should be viewed not simply as an additional banking option, but as a system in which financing is based on a specific economic transaction. Kahf considers human capital one of the main challenges: “We need to educate people and train professionals who understand and can implement this system.”
The organisers presented the Samarkand forum as a platform for developing practical recommendations and strengthening cooperation in Central Asia. Uzbekistan’s main task now is to turn the discussions into systems that enable the sector to operate. The country’s first Islamic banking licence is seen as the beginning of that process.
