Uzbekistan's financial regulators have launched large-scale work across several areas of the digital economy. The country's Central Bank is studying the possibility of launching a wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) based on the sum, testing stablecoins jointly with the National Agency for Prospective Projects (NAPP), and forming conditions for asset tokenization. Representatives of both regulators announced such plans on the sidelines of the Silk Road Finance and Technology Forum.
This step reflects the growing interest of countries in the region in digital payment instruments. The regulators described three parallel areas of work — from analyzing international experience to launching pilot projects.
Central Bank considers wholesale CBDC
Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank Nodirbek Achilov said that the regulator has only just begun researching the potential of CBDC and is carefully analyzing international practice, including the successes and failures of other states. A "white paper" has already been prepared jointly with the Global Financial Technology Network (GFTN) and is planned to be published.
Achilov cited two key reasons why the Central Bank leans toward a wholesale CBDC. The first is the ability to ensure secure and efficient settlements with financial institutions that are already under the regulator's supervision. The second reason is related to preserving public trust in the financial system. According to the Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank, building such trust took many years, and it must be protected.
"A wholesale CBDC seems to us a feasible option," Achilov noted.
In parallel, the Central Bank, together with NAPP, is studying the use of stablecoins within the regulatory "sandbox." Rules, instruments, and an operational framework are currently being developed there for testing the system on a small scale. Based on the results of the experiments, the regulator will assess market reaction and participant behavior. If necessary, the project will be expanded and regulation adjusted. At the initial stage, retail operations will go through licensed institutions, while the Central Bank will focus on building the foundation of the system and interacting with financial institutions.
NAPP launches pilot projects with stablecoins
The National Agency for Prospective Projects is already implementing pilot projects on the use of stablecoins as a means of payment. This was announced by First Deputy Director of NAPP Vyacheslav Pak. According to him, the agency and the Central Bank act as the two main regulators of financial services in the country.
NAPP's area of responsibility includes capital markets, insurance, e-commerce, and the circulation of crypto assets. This set of powers allows the agency to cover several areas of the digital economy at once and coordinate them with the Central Bank's policy. Pak noted that tokenization and stablecoins have become one of the main trends in the financial sector, so the agency has focused part of its current work on them, including developing regulation for the tokenization of bonds and shares.
"We are implementing pilot projects on the use of stablecoins as a means of payment here in Uzbekistan," Pak said.
Another priority of the agency has been the creation of a new type of payment system based on blockchain technology. This direction complements the work on stablecoins and tokenization, forming a unified line of development for the country's digital infrastructure.
Conditions for asset tokenization
As for tokenization, for its development it is first necessary to create infrastructure for storing and accounting for digital assets, ensure legal certainty of operations, and form clear rules for institutional investors. These are exactly the conditions named by Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank Nodirbek Achilov. According to him, before introducing new technological solutions, an appropriate foundation must be prepared — custodial services, depository accounting, transaction execution, and clearing.
Achilov also pointed to the need for clear standards for institutional investors and infrastructure organizations that will be responsible for asset custody, clearing, and transaction execution. These participants, in his opinion, play a key role in the stability of the entire system.
"First of all, it is necessary to create an environment with clear rules and predictable conditions. This can be done jointly with market participants and other colleagues," he said.
A single regulatory framework is not enough for market development, the Deputy Chairman emphasized. Market participants must trust tokenized instruments and view them as a way to raise capital. To create such an environment, the Central Bank intends to use regulatory mechanisms, including the "sandbox" and other technological tools.
According to Achilov, it is important for regulators to cooperate not only at the national but also at the regional level. Joint work will make it possible to identify regulatory gaps, study potential risks, and find solutions to eliminate them. "We must work together to be good partners in the field of regulation and market development," he added.
My view: Uzbekistan is demonstrating pragmatism rare for the region, moving forward on all key areas of digital finance at once. It is especially telling that regulators are betting on a wholesale CBDC and stablecoins rather than a retail digital currency, which carries more risks for the banking system. This is a signal for institutional investors: the country is preparing the ground for a serious tokenized asset market, not for speculative experiments. If the pilots succeed, Uzbekistan could become one of the leaders of digital transformation in Central Asia.