_BIOGRAPHY Aziz Akbarjonov became CEO of SQB in 2023, bringing over two decades of banking expertise. He previously served as First Deputy CEO and CCO at SQB, and holds both master's and bachelor's degrees from the Tashkent State University of Economics.

“THE BANK THAT THE MARKET SEES TODAY IS INDUSTRIALLY ANCHORED, DIGITALLY MODERN, INTERNATIONALLY GOVERNED AND CLIMATE ALIGNED.”

SQB HAS COMPLETED THREE INTERNATIONAL PLACEMENTS IN SIX YEARS. WHAT CHANGED?

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SQB has moved a long way in two years, and the international placements tell the story without needing the figures. The Eurobond of 2019 was the country's first corporate placement on the London Stock Exchange, a moment that opened the door for Uzbek institutions on global capital markets.

The sustainability bond of 2024 brought international ESG investors into the conversation for the first time. And in October 2025 the AT1 issuance, the first of its kind in Central Asia, confirmed that the bank can raise capital on the same terms as any peer in a sophisticated market.

The supervisory board is now majority independent, drawn from European and regional financial institutions. Reporting is under International Financial Reporting Standards, audited by one of the four global firms and disclosed on a quarterly cycle. The ratings agencies have followed: Fitch at BB (one notch below investment grade), S&P at BB- with stable outlook (two notches below) and Ba3 Positive from Moody's (also two notches below).

None of this happened by accident. It is the result of a deliberate transformation programme run with the support of the IFC and a clear instruction from the Government to align Uzbek banking with international practice. The bank that the market sees today is industrially anchored, digitally modern, internationally governed and climate aligned. That is the foundation we have built, and it has been built to last well beyond any single transaction or cycle.

WHAT IS SQB'S LONG-TERM COMMITMENT TO UZBEKISTAN'S ECONOMY AND PRODUCTIVE BASE?

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Our vision is the same one we set out when the transformation began, and it has not shifted. SQB exists to help carry Uzbekistan into the ranks of the world's upper middle-income countries by 2030, and the bank's commitment is to be there for every part of the economy that delivers on that ambition.

Manufacturing carries the largest share, alongside national champions in oil and gas, chemicals, transport and energy, with a growing presence in agriculture and construction.

These are the sectors that build the country, and the bank has chosen to anchor itself in them. Around that industrial base we have built a substantial retail and SME presence, with services that reach approximately 1.2 million active users every month across every region of the country, alongside a branch footprint that supports them in person.

The first half of 2025 confirmed the direction. Profit grew sharply against the same period last year, the loan portfolio expanded across all priority sectors, and the bank's capital ratios remained comfortably above the regulator's floor.

We continue to deepen partnerships with the IFC, EBRD and ADB, because long-term development finance is the right capital for long-term industrial transformation. The next phase of the country's growth will be shaped by Uzbek industry, exporters households, and SQB intends to remain the bank that finances each of them with conviction and patience.

WHAT IS YOUR MESSAGE TO INVESTORS INTERESTED IN UZBEKISTAN?

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Uzbekistan is one of the most consequential reform stories in the region, and the trajectory President Shavkat Mirziyoyev set out in 2017 has held with remarkable consistency. Growth has remained strong year after year, foreign direct investment has reached levels that would have been unimaginable a decade ago, and the country has built the institutional architecture that international capital needs to participate with confidence.

SQB sits inside that picture as the bank financing manufacturing, energy, transport and the new generation of Uzbek companies preparing to engage with international markets.

Whether investors come to look at an Uzbek industry, a regional infrastructure project, an ESG opportunity, a partnership in agriculture or simply to understand how the financial sector is being modernised, the bank is positioned to be their first partner in the country.

We have spent the past several years rebuilding the institution to international standards precisely so that this conversation is straightforward, transparent and grounded in the same disclosure framework investors are familiar with.

What remains is for international investors to see Uzbekistan with fresh eyes and to recognise that the growth ahead will be written with partners who arrive now and stay for the long term.