Bloomberg: Uzbekistan Emerging as New Investment Hub

Uzbekistan is increasingly viewed as a new source of capital market activity in Central Asia, Bloomberg reports, citing Alan Siow, co-head of emerging market corporate debt at Ninety One.

According to the publication, a forthcoming wave of initial public offerings (IPOs), largely driven by the privatisation of state-owned companies, is expected to attract a broad range of international investors. Giovanni Salvetti, head of the CIS region at Rothschild & Co, said investors from Gulf countries and China have already expressed strong interest in the process.

In addition, major global financial institutions, including Barclays and Citibank, are reportedly organising investment tours to Uzbekistan to showcase opportunities in the country’s rapidly expanding market.

Bloomberg highlighted growing foreign demand for Uzbek assets, citing several large-scale energy and infrastructure projects as examples. These include Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power’s $15 bn renewable energy initiatives, Australia’s Allied Green Ammonia project worth $5.5 bn to produce aviation fuel, and the planned construction of a nuclear power plant in partnership with Russia’s Rosatom.

Kursiv also reports that the Russian Export Centre (REC) has identified the most promising sectors for Russian exporters seeking to expand their presence in Uzbekistan.