Best bank: SQB
Benefiting from robust economic growth in the country, Uzbekistan’s banking sector continued its rapid expansion last year and one bank led the pack, SQB, the country’s second largest lender.
Led by Aziz Akbarjonov, chairman of the management board, the bank has gone through a substantial transformation in recent years and 2023 marked another year of progress and strong financial performance.
AfE 2024
SQB reported profit for the year to the end of December 2023 of Som856 billion ($67.7 million) – up by more than 30% on 2022 – on interest income of Som7 trillion, a year-on-year increase of 43%.
High interest rates together with loan growth drove the performance, with loans and advances to customers jumping Som10 trillion to Som58 trillion by the end of last year, helping to swell total assets to around Som73 trillion.
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