Uzbekistan Fintech Uzum Valued At $2.3 Billion After New Funding

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

March 10, 2026

Uzbekistan’s fintech leader Uzum has achieved a remarkable $2.3 billion valuation, marking a 53% increase in just seven months. This surge comes on the back of a $131.5 million funding round led by sovereign wealth funds from Oman, with continued backing from investors such as Tencent, VR Capital, and FinSight Ventures.

The investment round comprises $81.5 million in equity and $50 million in convertible financing, positioning the startup for a potential pre-IPO raise of $250 million to $300 million in late 2026 or early 2027. Notably, this follows an earlier milestone when Uzum secured $65.5 million at a $1.5 billion valuation in August 2025, establishing it as the country’s first unicorn.

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Building Uzbekistan’s Digital Ecosystem

Founded in 2022, Uzum operates a digital platform that combines e-commerce, payments and consumer lending services. The company initially launched Uzum Market as an online marketplace and later expanded its operations by introducing a digital bank, Uzum Bank, a consumer lending service called Uzum Nasiya and an express food delivery service known as Uzum Tezkor.

During its previous funding round, Uzum reported more than 17 million monthly active users. The platform now connects nearly 20 million users with more than 17,000 local sellers. Payment volume on the platform reached $11 billion in 2025. Annual transacting users increased from about 3 million to 4.6 million over the past year.

Fintech Driving Profitability

Fintech services represent a major source of revenue for the company. Uzum reported revenue growth from $505 million to $691 million in 2025, while net income increased from $150 million to $176 million. Its e-commerce division recorded $500 million in gross merchandise value and reached EBITDA profitability within three years of operation. The digital bank currently serves around 5 million customers and has issued 4.1 million debit cards. These cards represented nearly half of all debit cards issued in Uzbekistan in 2025. Uzum reports an unsecured loan portfolio of $400 million and a total financing volume of $1.2 billion. Management expects the bank to add about 5 million additional customers as lending and payment services expand.

The company is also expanding cross-border marketplace operations by integrating products from international suppliers. The platform now includes about 200 million SKUs from markets such as Turkey and China alongside roughly 1.5 million locally sourced products available for next-day delivery.

Investing In Infrastructure For Sustainable Growth

To support its expansive growth, Uzum has significantly invested in its logistics and physical infrastructure. The company currently operates approximately 1,500 pickup points across Uzbekistan, with plans to double that network by 2026. Additionally, its warehouse footprint is set to expand from 125,000 to roughly 500,000 square meters, facilitated by four new logistics centers.

Chief strategy and business development officer Nikolay Seleznev said direct investment in logistics remains necessary in markets where third-party fulfillment services are limited.

Positioning For A Global Stage

Uzum plans to use the new funding to expand fintech and commerce services, including additional ATMs, payment systems and point-of-sale infrastructure. The company is also considering several potential locations for a future public listing, including exchanges in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Management has indicated that an initial public offering could take place within the next three years.

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AI Spending Is Complicating The Fed’s Fight Against Inflation

by News Editor

August 12, 2026

Silicon Valley leaders have long argued that artificial intelligence will make technology and services dramatically cheaper. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has described a future where intelligence becomes extremely inexpensive, while Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has predicted that AI and robotics will create greater abundance and drive down costs.

So far, those benefits have yet to materialise at scale. AI adoption remains relatively slow, while the enormous investment needed for data centres and AI infrastructure is putting pressure on electricity prices, supply chains and other costs. For the Federal Reserve, this creates a difficult balancing act: AI could eventually boost productivity and reduce inflation, but its current buildout is contributing to higher prices.

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OpenAI chief economist Ronnie Chatterji said AI needs to be adopted by organisations and generate measurable value before its broader economic impact becomes visible in productivity statistics.

AI Adoption Remains Uneven

Capital spending on AI infrastructure in the U.S. is expected to reach $581 billion this year, according to Goldman Sachs Research, with global investment potentially reaching $1 trillion.

Despite the scale of spending, adoption remains far from universal. A May survey by the U.S. Census Bureau found that 17% to 20% of U.S. businesses reported using AI, with adoption significantly higher among large companies.

Companies that have implemented AI at scale also highlight the challenges. Julie Averill, former CIO of Lululemon, said successful deployment requires changes in employee behaviour and trust in the technology. OpenAI has observed a similar divide: its most advanced business users deploy AI at around eight times the rate of average companies.

Why Productivity Gains May Take Time

Economists point to the limits of automation. AI can perform individual tasks effectively, but many jobs combine tasks that are difficult to automate.

Stanford professor Charles Jones refers to these as “weak links”. Radiology, for example, involves interpreting scans but also communicating with patients and working with colleagues. AI can automate part of the job without eliminating the profession itself.

As a result, the full economic impact of AI may not become clear until businesses adopt the technology more broadly and reorganise their operations around it.

AI Adds To The Fed’s Policy Challenge

AI’s economic impact has become part of the Federal Reserve’s policy debate. Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh has argued that AI could eventually become a significant disinflationary force by increasing productivity and strengthening U.S. competitiveness.

Other officials are more cautious. In July, the Fed kept interest rates at 3.5% to 3.75%, while some officials expressed concern that AI infrastructure spending could add to inflationary pressures.

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari pointed to massive data-centre investment as a new source of demand. Household electricity prices rose 10% in the two years through July, compared with a 6.2% increase in overall consumer prices. Meanwhile, shortages of chips and other AI components are pushing up costs. JPMorgan Chase estimates that DRAM prices could rise 400% by the end of 2026 compared with 2024.

Warsh has consequently adopted a more cautious tone, saying that while AI investment is laying the groundwork for future growth, the timing and scale of its economic effects remain difficult to predict.

For the Fed, the challenge is clear: AI could eventually deliver major productivity gains, but the cost of building that future is already showing up in the economy.

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