The Central Bank has submitted for public discussion a draft presidential decree on the establishment of a Company for Managing Currency and Interest Rate Risks. The discussion will continue until October 15, and the organization is proposed to be established as a joint-stock company.

Three main objectives

  • development of the derivatives market;
  • expansion of business opportunities for managing currency risks;
  • protection of major enterprises with state ownership of 50% or more against currency and interest rate risks on debt obligations.

Why it's needed

The problem is practical. A state-owned company borrows in foreign currency but receives revenue in local currency. When the national currency weakens, the cost of servicing the debt rises, even though operational performance hasn't changed.

Hedging allows fixing conditions in advance—but this requires a counterparty willing to take the opposite side of the transaction. The new structure is intended to play exactly this role.

What powers are provided

The company will be able to:

  • enter into derivative transactions with the Ministry of Economy and Finance, banks, and international financial institutions;
  • ensure market liquidity through continuous quotations on the internal currency and money markets;
  • monitor compliance of hedging prices on domestic and international markets;
  • participate in operations on the interbank money market;
  • buy and sell currency on the exchange and over-the-counter trading;
  • attract resources through issuance of securities;
  • obtain credit ratings from international agencies.

It is also envisaged to involve an international vendor organization for entering into transactions, settlements, and information storage.

Capital

To form authorized capital, it is proposed to allocate 170 billion soums to the authorized capital of JSC «National Clearing Center» within three months.

The minimum size of authorized capital for organizations of this profile is proposed to be set at 500 billion soums.

Mandatory strategy for state companies

A separate provision: The Ministry of Economy and Finance is proposed to establish a mandatory requirement for a currency and interest rate risk management strategy when approving financial plans of large enterprises with state ownership.

This is a fundamental change. Today, such companies often accept currency risk by default, without a formalized assessment of its consequences.

Supervision and personnel training

By October 1, 2027, the Central Bank is proposed to:

  • develop supervision rules for such organizations;
  • adapt prudential requirements for banks' derivative operations to the standards of the Basel Committee;
  • organize professional development programs for market participants with involvement of foreign experts.

Part of the broader agenda

The initiative complements the recent launch of a joint venture between UzRTSB and Phillip Capital, which opened access to futures on global platforms for local companies.

The difference is in focus: that platform handles commodity risks—oil, gold, cotton. The new company is oriented toward currency and interest rate risks on debt obligations.

The relevance is evident from statistics: the country's corporate external debt exceeds government debt, and a significant portion falls on borrowers without currency revenues.

For the market as a whole, the emergence of a market maker with continuous quotations is a prerequisite without which derivatives remain inaccessible. How this will affect the currency exchange rate on the domestic market will be shown by practice: in theory, a developed hedging market reduces the amplitude of fluctuations.

This material is for informational purposes and is not an investment recommendation.