Uzbekistan is moving to bring stablecoins into its formal payment system, starting with a tightly controlled developmental sandbox, according to local media.
According to a Friday
by local news outlet Kun, Uzbekistan’s new stablecoin regulatory framework will come into force on Jan. 1, 2026. The new law, signed on Thursday, establishes a regulatory sandbox under the purview of the National Agency for Perspective Projects, together with the central bank.
Pilot projects are expected to be implemented to develop a stablecoin-based payment system operating on distributed ledger technology. Starting next year, Uzbekistan-based entities will be allowed to issue tokenized shares and bonds, and a separate trading platform will be created on licensed stock exchanges for these assets.
The news follows Uzbekistan’s central bank Chairman Timur Ishmetov
in September that studies on digital currencies were underway. At the time, he said crypto activities “should be done under strict control, as it will have a serious impact on monetary policy.”
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CBDCs also on the table
Ishmetov also mentioned
central bank digital currencies (CBDCs)
, but not in their retail form. He said that “such a currency would not be used in people’s daily lives, but mainly to speed up settlements between commercial or central banks.
Kashkadarya Regional branch of the Central Bank of Uzbekistan. Source:
Uzbekistan’s National Agency for Prospective Projects issued a directive in late March 2024 to
increase monthly fees for crypto market participants
in the country. Under the new system, crypto exchanges face a monthly fee equivalent to $20,015 — about double the previous fee.
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Central Asia not left being left behind
As much of the world develops crypto regulatory frameworks, Central Asia has also progressed. In late October,
Kyrgyzstan rolled out a new stablecoin
pegged 1:1 to the Kyrgyzstani som, while confirming plans to issue a central bank digital currency and explore a digital asset reserve.
Kazakhstan clearly leads the pack
. According to October reports, Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency
took down 130 crypto platforms
involved in money laundering schemes this year. Earlier that month, the country
continued implementing its dual-track approach
to digital assets, piloting a CBDC while also backing a state-linked stablecoin.
This followed the
launch of the Kazakhstan central bank’s stablecoin
pilot project in late September. Also in September, the country
established a state-backed crypto reserve
in partnership with Binance, holding BNB (
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