The National Agency for Advanced Projects (NAPP) has issued the first permits for conducting betting activities and organizing risk-based games online in Uzbekistan. According to the agency's license register, the relevant permissions were granted to the companies Olimpbet and Aurum Vale.
Each company was issued two licenses valid for five years, effective until July 30, 2031. Olimpbet received license ITO No. 001 for conducting risk-based games via the website olimpbet.uz, as well as license BF No. 001 for betting activities. Both licenses were issued on July 31 in accordance with NAPP Orders No. 62 and No. 63 dated July 27.
Aurum Vale received license ITO No. 002 for organizing risk-based games via the website oltinbet.uz and license BF No. 002 for betting activities. These documents were also issued on July 31 according to NAPP Orders No. 64 and No. 65 dated July 27.
According to the Unified State Register of Enterprises and Organizations, Olimpbet was registered on June 2, 2021, in the Chilanzar district of Tashkent city. The company's main activity is listed as other entertainment and leisure activities. Its charter capital amounts to 63.1 billion soms. The founders of the company are Rif Amirovich Sharayev (owner of 50 percent), Sergey Gennadievich Kozyavkin (17.4 percent), Darina Borisovna Denisova (16.3 percent), and Andrey Nikolaevich Petukhov (16.3 percent). Natalia Alexandrovna Demidova has been appointed as the company's head.
Aurum Vale was registered on July 14, 2025, in the Bektemir district of Tashkent city. Its main activity is other types of information services not classified elsewhere. The charter capital of this company reaches 67.2 billion soms. The sole founder is Abror Sabitovich Shermatov, who owns 100 percent of the shares. Vasily Vladimirovich Biryukov has been appointed as the head of Aurum Vale.
The Ministry of Justice of Uzbekistan has introduced amendments to the procedure for operating a special legal regime designed for testing crypto technologies under regulatory supervision. These changes concern the rules for issuing stablecoins.
Previously, participants in the experimental regime were only allowed to issue stablecoins provided they had backing in the form of national or foreign currency. Now, issuers have access to using government securities owned by the issuer itself as collateral for digital assets.
According to the updated regulations, funds must be placed in a dedicated account at the Central Bank. Simultaneously, government securities are blocked through the Central Depository on behalf of the regulator, following established depository procedures. It is important to note that the issuer retains the right to receive income and interest from these securities.
An mandatory condition has been introduced to ensure the security of holders of digital assets: the total value of funds held in the Central Bank's account, along with the nominal value of the blocked government securities, must equal or exceed the total nominal value of all stablecoins in circulation. Furthermore, forming this collateral using borrowed funds, loans, or pledged property is prohibited.
It should be recalled that an organized criminal group engaged in illegal trading of crypto assets was previously liquidated in Tashkent. According to investigative bodies, the volume of turnover of this criminal scheme reached $1.5 million.
In recent years, entrepreneurship in Uzbekistan has become not only an important direction of economic policy but also a key pillar for ensuring population employment and increasing incomes. In this process, the open dialogue of the President with entrepreneurs has taken a special place. These meetings have turned into a permanent platform where business representatives directly voice their problems, propose solutions, and the state develops new support measures based on them.
The first meeting, held in 2021, laid the foundation for a new format of cooperation between the state and entrepreneurs. It was particularly noted that the private sector provides almost 90% of jobs created annually, and over 5 million people work in this sector. Special attention was paid to how significantly the attitude of society and government bodies towards entrepreneurs has changed, as they have begun to recognize business as the driving force of the economy and an important element of the development of New Uzbekistan.
Before these meetings began, over 15 thousand questions, proposals, and initiatives were received from entrepreneurs, which indicated the high need of the business community for direct and practical interaction with the authorities. The first fruits of this format were visible already in 2022. In one year, entrepreneurs built more than 55 thousand business facilities. The number of business entities with an annual turnover exceeding 1 million dollars increased from 5 thousand to 26 thousand.
Furthermore, another thousand entrepreneurs increased their turnover to the level of 1 to 10 million dollars, and the total turnover of 220 companies reached 100 million dollars. An important result was the growth in the foreign trade sector: the number of exporting enterprises reached 7.5 thousand, and the total export volume increased by 30%. In 2022, in addition to quantitative growth, a number of proposals for systemic reforms were put forward. One of the most important decisions was the division of business entities into micro, small, and medium businesses. This allowed for the abandonment of uniform standards of approach to all entrepreneurs and created the possibility of targeted support depending on the scale of activity and potential.
Based on this decision, starting January 1, 2023, a single rate of 4% was established for micro-businesses, replacing the previous system of rates that varied from 4% to 25% depending on the turnover volume. In 2023, the open dialogue was assessed as an effective mechanism for solving problems in entrepreneurship. Following the meetings of 2021 and 2022, 57 and 55 initiatives were advanced, respectively, which led to significant results. Among them are the division of business entities into categories and the introduction of special tax, credit, and financial regimes in 60 districts. Entrepreneurs operating in these districts benefited from discounts totaling about 1 trillion sums over six months, and in 20 districts, entrepreneurs' incomes increased by 1.5–2 times.
There were also significant changes in the tax system. Over the year, 20 trillion sums of VAT were returned to 6 thousand enterprises. Additionally, more than 7 trillion sums were returned to over 2 thousand exporters who complied with tax obligations, without waiting for currency receipts. Reaching 184 thousand VAT payers indicates the transition of business entities from the 'shadow economy' to legal activities. Inspections were reduced, and financial fines applied as a result of desk audits and some reporting deficiencies were abolished. As a result, the number of small enterprises grew to 40 thousand, and then to 490 thousand; the number of medium enterprises increased by 2 thousand, reaching 10 thousand; and the number of large enterprises reached 1.5 thousand.
The scope of the open dialogue is expanding in 2024. Work with entrepreneurs is conducted consistently almost year-round—from the President and Government to the khokimiyats, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Business Ombudsman. In addition to approved programs and plans, over 700 questions, initiatives, and new projects proposed by entrepreneurs have received support. To achieve these goals, an additional 8 trillion sums were allocated, and another 18 trillion sums were directed to infrastructure development in the fields of industry, agriculture, services, and entrepreneurship.
As a result, the sector is experiencing qualitative growth. The share of enterprises operating for more than three years reached 76%, and their number reached 300 thousand for the first time. The turnover of business entities for the year exceeded 25%, reaching 986 trillion sums. The number of medium enterprises with a turnover of 10 to 100 billion sums doubled, and the number of large enterprises with a turnover exceeding 100 billion sums exceeded 2,200. Moreover, 16 thousand enterprises that were previously operating at a loss transitioned to profitable activities within six months, generating a total income of 6.5 trillion sums.
An important result was the improvement of relations between the state and business. The number of tax inspections decreased from 85 thousand to 48 thousand, and desk audits decreased from 38 thousand to 12 thousand. At the same time, tax revenues did not decrease but rather increased: by 10% from large taxpayers, by 25% among enterprises at the regional level, and by 40% among district-level entrepreneurs. This situation demonstrates that strengthening mutual trust, reducing administrative pressure, and stimulating legitimate entrepreneurial activity can yield more effective results than excessive control.
In 2025, the main focus is on transitioning to a new stage of entrepreneurial development. In the first half of the year, economic growth was 7.2%. Within this growth, thousands of micro and small enterprises began to develop actively. Over the year, 1,600 micro-enterprises with a turnover exceeding 10 billion sums transitioned to the category of medium-sized businesses. 143 micro-enterprises became large business entities, and another 122 small enterprises joined the ranks of large companies.
Indeed, the country is giving top priority to bringing business activities out of the 'shadow economy' and legalizing population employment. Thanks to the implemented new mechanisms, the number of jobs in 139 thousand enterprises increased to 811 thousand, and then to 3 million. The wage fund in 273 thousand enterprises increased by 22%, reaching 4.6 trillion sums. If the average monthly salary in the private sector in 2024 was about 4 million sums, in 2025 this figure approached 5 million sums. This highlights that entrepreneurship is not only a source of income but also an important factor in improving the welfare and standard of living of the population.
In conclusion, the open dialogues held from 2021 to 2025 have transformed into an effective feedback mechanism between the state and business entities. Systemic problems arising in the activities of entrepreneurs are identified and resolved promptly and practically. Simplifying the tax and administrative burden, expanding opportunities for using financial resources, and supporting export activities and investment projects have contributed to strengthening mutual trust between the state and entrepreneurs.
