Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Finance in Uzbekistan: Challenges and Opportunities

Table 15: Financing Scheme under State Program Every Family
is an Entrepreneur 
Beneficiary 
Purpose 
Loan Amount 
Interest 
Rate 
Term and 
Grace 
Period 
Security 
Individuals
Family business 
organization
Up to 150 
times minimum 
wage 
($3,420)
70
 
8%
71
 
Up to 3 
years/ with a 
grace period 
of up to 6 
months 
Recommendation of the 
head of the self-
governance bodies.
Banks insure the risk of 
loan defaults by 
themselves 
SMEs (individual 
entrepreneurs, 
microfirms and 
small enterprises 
Business start-up 
development and 
expansion
Up to 1,000 
times minimum 
wage 
($22,810) 
The guarantee of a third 
party or the State Fund 
for the Support of the 
Entrepreneurship 
Development under the 
Cabinet of Ministers, an 
insurance policy, a 
pledge, etc. 
Over 1000 
times minimum 
wage 
Up to 5 
years/ with a 
grace period 
of up to 2 
years 
The list of security 
determined by the 
legislation 
69
Resolution of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan PP 3777 dated 07.06.2018. 
http://lex.uz/docs/3772866. 
70
Minimum salary as of 1 October 2018 – SUM184,300; exchange rate $1 – SUM8,079.28. 
http://cbu.uz/uzc/arkhiv-kursov-valyut/. 
71
https://nrm.uz/contentf?doc=580536_postanovlenie_pravleniya_centralnogo_banka_ot_16_02_2019 
_g_n_310_o_vnesenii_izmeneniya_v_punkt_4_polojeniya_o_poryadke_vydeleniya_kreditov_v_ramkah
_programmy_kajdaya_semya_-_predprinimatel_(zaregistrirovano_myu_26_02_2019_g_n_3022-1). 

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ADBI Working Paper 997 
D. Tadjibaeva 
42 
The significant amount of low interest credit flowing to households under the program 
offers both an opportunity and a challenge to ensure that the program leads to the 
development of the micro-enterprise support ecosystem in addition to credit. It should be 
noted that nonfinancial services, such as advisory services, business development, 
incubation, and market support, are underdeveloped—especially in rural areas. In 
addition to access to finance, available nonfinancial services are an important balance 
to the current efforts of the government’s support to SMEs. The State Committee on 
Investments allocated $200 million to this program by attracting credit lines from 
international financial institutions. The funds are distributed to commercial banks through 
the National Bank of Uzbekistan.
As stated by the Chairman of the Central Bank of Uzbekistan,
72
the government plans to 
establish the special development, which will be financed by all state programs and 
perform subsidized lending, and the current practice of providing subsidized credit 
through commercial banks will be abolished.
In an effort to boost SME exports, the Government of Uzbekistan created the Export 
Promotion Fund for Small Business and Private Entrepreneurship (EPF) under the 
National Bank of Uzbekistan (NBU) in 2013. The EPF provides the following services: 
Export marketing; support for the registration of export contracts with Uzbekistan’s 
authorities; research on standards in target markets; legal services; and loans and 
financial services.
Taking into account the current economic reform, it is necessary to revise the SME 
finance policy framework and to provide tangible support to meet SME financing needs.