Central Bank headquarters in Uzbekistan. Photo from spot.uz
As of 18 February, companies and individual businessmen operating in Uzbekistan are now able to carry out round-the-clock financial transfers using the new Anor system provided by the country’s central bank. According to a press release from the Central Bank (in Russian), the system is based on web services technology and works by electronic signature.
In the first two days of the new system’s operation, over a thousand transfers were made, to a sum of almost 20 billion Soms ($2.1m). The press release does not indicate whether businesses will be able to transfer money in foreign currencies through the new system.
The advantages of the Anor system are that users no longer need to visit a bank branch in person, and can transfer money outside of bank opening hours. The transferred funds will also be available to the recipient instantly. Whether any extra commission will be charged for using the service and whether the system will in future be available for use by private individuals was not specified.
The system was released on a trial basis at the end of 2019, with the commercial banks Hamkorbank, Trustbank, Ipoteka Bank and Turkiston Bank connected to the service. The country’s remaining financial organisations are expected to join Anor during the course of February-March.
