TASHKENT

Uzbekistan’s foreign currency exchange UZCE has reduced the amount of commission on foreign currency purchase and sale operations by almost half from December 1, this year.

The commission fee was cut to 0.027 percent from the current 0.05 percent to introduce a flexible tariff policy aimed at increasing the volume of operations and supporting market liquidity, UZCE said.

The commission fee for the purchase and sale of foreign currency on UZCE is charged in the sum equivalent of the dealer’s net turnover, i.e. in the amount of the positive difference between the volumes of purchase and sale of foreign currency.

The measures implemented will help to increase the attractiveness of transactions to purchase and sale of foreign currency by reducing the cost of participation in auctions for commercial banks, and for the bank’s customers – reducing the cost of foreign currency purchased from commercial banks, as well as stimulate the creation of new markets and the introduction of new instruments on the UZCE, the report said.

Separately, another financial institution, the Uzbekistan Stock Exchange, signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Moscow Exchange.

Joint work will be aimed at developing exchange instruments, opening new markets and strengthening bilateral relations. According to the memorandum, the possibility of establishing trade links between exchanges for cross-listing of securities included in the quotation lists of trading platforms is being considered. It also provides for the transfer of the experience of the Moscow Exchange in organising trades in foreign securities.

“We see a great interest of Uzbek companies in attracting capital in the Russian market, and on the part of exchanges in using our best practices in building an effective infrastructure of the financial market. On the other hand, Russian investors and financial institutions are interested in participating in the growth of the capital market in Uzbekistan,” Igor Marich, the Moscow Exchange managing director for sales and business development, said.