Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Dec. 16
By Mamed Dashdemirov – Trend:
TASHKENT /Trend/ - The aggregate assets of Uzbekistan's commercial banks have increased by 91.7 percent in the first nine months of 2017 to 161.2 trillion sums. Their profitability rose from 2 percent to 2.73 percent, Uzbekistan's Central Bank told Trend.
In particular, in this period assets of Uzbek banks determined with the consideration of risks rose by 72.5 percent 99.1 trillion sums, and assets by 94.1 percent to 41.4 trillion sums.
In January to September, 2017 the aggregate capital rose by 79.9 percent to 16.1 trillion sums, including regulatory capital by 81.7 percent to 15.4 trillion sums, with 13.2 trillion sums (+83.6 percent) accounting for regulatory capital of the first level.
Gross profit of Uzbekistan's commercial banks rose by 34.6 percent as compared to results of the third quarter of 2016 to 7.5 trillion sums as of October 1, 2017 and net profit before taxes by 92 percent to 2.8 trillion sums.
As many as 28 commercial banks operate in Uzbekistan,including three state banks - the National Bank for foreign economic relations, Asakabank and People's Bank, transformed from the units of Soviet Savings Bank, as well as 12 stock-commercial banks, eight private and three banks with foreign capital.
In this period the monetary policy was carried out in conditions of high inflation pressures on economy due to increase in the volume of money supply and high growth rate of devaluation of exchange rate carried out within liberalization of currency market. That led to decreasing real interest rates and relevant growth of demand for bank loan.
In this situation, it was decided to increase refinancing risks from 9 percent to 14 percent beginning from June 28, 2017 in an effort to delay growth rate of prices on the internal market and to decrease inflation risks, the bank said. That promoted increase in medium level of interest rates on interbank market from 8.1-9 percent to 12-12.2 percent in the third quarter of this year.
The financial regulator actively used tools of monetary policy to meet the demand of commercial banks in liquidity, the bank said. In particular, operations on providing short-term loan against a pledge in foreign currency and swap operation were activated beginning from the second quarter.
Currency rate was 8,093 UZS/USD on Dec. 16, 2017.