The volume of remote currency exchange operations in Uzbekistan continues to increase, but the growth rate of these channels lags behind the indicators of traditional exchange points, according to an analysis by the Central Bank.
The volume of remote currency exchange operations in Uzbekistan continues to increase, but the growth rate of these channels lags behind the indicators of traditional exchange points, according to an analysis by the Central Bank.
According to the Central Bank, during the period from January to June, currency transactions totaling $11.157 billion were conducted through bank exchange offices, significantly exceeding $8.369 billion for the same period last year. Meanwhile, the volume of operations at traditional exchange points showed an approximate growth of 33.3%.
Remote banking services allowed individuals to exchange $7.479 billion compared to $5.879 billion in the first half of 2025, corresponding to an increase of 27.2%. The most active area was the use of currency ATMs: the volume of operations through them increased from $252 million to $404 million, or approximately 60.3%.
Nevertheless, despite rapid growth, the currency ATM segment remains small, accounting for only slightly over 2% of the total volume of population transactions with foreign currency. For comparison, traditional exchange points process 59% of all transactions, and remote channels account for 39%. In total, about $19 billion passed through all listed points in the first half of the year.
It is important to note that although the absolute volume of remote currency exchange continues to grow, its share in the overall turnover has decreased over the past year. In the first half of 2024, online channels accounted for 37% of currency exchange operations. In 2025, this figure rose to 41%, but in the first half of 2026, it decreased to 39%.
The situation with exchange points had the opposite trend: their share decreased from 62% in 2024 to 58% in 2025, after which it increased again to 59% in the first half of the current year.
The Central Bank explains the development of 24-hour ATMs and remote services as an expansion of citizens' access to digital banking services. According to the regulator, digital methods allow transactions to be carried out at any time of the day, reduce operating costs, and improve the accessibility of financial services.
During the reporting six-month period, individuals sold currency to banks amounting to $12.3 billion, which is 35% more than the previous year. The volume of currency purchases by the population increased by 26%, reaching $6.8 billion. Thus, over six months, the population sold approximately $5.5 billion more in foreign currency to banks than it acquired, whereas last year this difference was $3.7 billion.
The population remains a major net seller of foreign currency. The ratio of the net supply of currency by the population to the total turnover of currency exchange operations grew from 26% in the first half of 2025 to 29% in January-June 2026.
Furthermore, changes to the internal control rules of commercial banks came into force on August 9. One of these changes raised the transaction threshold requiring client identification from $100 to $500. When purchasing cash foreign currency within the established limit, there was no need to present a passport, ID card, or other substitute document.
Food delivery aggregator Swiggy announced on Monday the launch of its AI assistant named 'Guru' for its restaurant partners. This tool is designed to track payments and monitor the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.
The assistant is available to 270 thousand restaurants in over 720 cities. Swiggy reported that the menu analysis features in 'Guru' allow partners to add items, create descriptions, and highlight the most popular products, providing personalized data based on the analysis of category performance and best practices.
Rohit Kapoor, CEO of Swiggy Food Marketplace, noted that artificial intelligence has changed business methods and increases efficiency across all industries. He added that, having collaborated with restaurants for over 12 years, the company understands the daily operational requirements and the need for constant execution of multiple tasks faced by partners.
Eight construction workers discovered gold coins and bars totaling $10.5 million (169 million Roman francs) in Belgium last Tuesday during work, officials reported.
The gold find was made beneath the building undergoing renovation in the town of Dendermonde, located approximately 19 miles northwest of Brussels.
The discovery was made by Kob Philips, a student working part-time on the construction site. He told Belgian broadcaster VTM: 'I thought they were one-euro coins neatly laid out in a row. We dug them up, and then we saw a small gold bar lying there, already attached to our pickaxe. In fact, there was a bit more than we expected.'
After the discovery, the workers contacted the property owner, who then called the police, according to VTM's Face. The Eastern Flanders prosecutor's office informed CNN that the police were called due to the significant value of the find, and the gold is currently being kept in a 'secure and guarded location.'
Face specified that some of the gold bars are marked with dates from the 1960s, while the sovereign coins feature different monarchs and dates.
This find has already led to potential claimants. Face noted: 'We already have citizens who want to claim the gold, having various documents proving they are descendants.'
A police investigation is currently underway to determine if there are any criminal aspects to the case.
