OREANDA-NEWS. The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Trade Finance Program (TFP) and Joint-Stock Commercial Aloqabank (Aloqabank) today signed an agreement to provide loans and support trade in Uzbekistan.

The agreement was signed by Takeo Konishi, ADB Country Director in Uzbekistan, and Khasan Rakhmatov, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Aloqabank, at a ceremony in Tashkent.

“We are excited to have Aloqabank as our newest partner bank as we continue to support trade flows, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in Uzbekistan," said Nana Khurodze, TFP’s Relationship Manager for Uzbekistan.

“We are convinced that the signing of a trade finance agreement between Aloqabank and ADB will serve as a basis for cooperation and implementation of new projects in the future," said Kammuna Irisbekova, Chairman of the Board of Aloqabank.

ADB’s TFP has been operating in Uzbekistan since 2010 and currently works with 5 local partner banks. To date, the program has conducted 473 transactions, supporting almost $1.3 billion in trade in Uzbekistan, benefiting SMEs in a wide range of sectors including food and agricultural goods, commodities and industrial machineries, and capital goods.

Aloqabank was established in accordance with the Decree of the Cabinet Ministers in 1994 to provide financial support for the modernization and development of information technology and telecommunication industry companies. Today, Aloqabank caters all business sectors through its 14 branches in Uzbekistan.

TFP, backed by ADB's AAA credit rating, provides guarantees and loans to over 200 partner banks to support trade, enabling more companies throughout Asia to engage in import and export activities. With dedicated trade finance specialists and a 24-hour response time, the program has established itself as a key partner in the international trade community, providing fast, reliable, and responsive support to fill gaps in the region’s most challenging markets.

TFP complements its financial support with a regular series of workshops and seminars to increase knowledge and expertise in trade finance products and operations, risk management, and fraud prevention.

Since 2009, ADB’s TFP has supported more than 12,000 small and medium-sized businesses across developing Asia—through over 16,600 transactions valued at over $30 billion—in sectors ranging from commodities and capital goods, to medical supplies and consumer goods. In 2017, TFP supported approximately $4.5 billion in trade through 3,505 transactions.