BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 9. Uzbekistan’s
soum-denominated sovereign international bonds will be included in
J.P. Morgan’s Government Bond Index – Emerging Markets (GBI-EM)
from September 30, 2026.
According to the released of Uzbek Ministry of Economy, the
inclusion was announced by J.P. Morgan, one of the world’s leading
investment banks.
Uzbekistan placed three-year sovereign international bonds
equivalent to $1 billion, or 12.2 trillion soums, in 2026 at a
coupon rate of 12.25%. The rate was an average of 14 basis points
below the prevailing level in the domestic financial market.
“The issuance was recorded asthe largest local-currency
transaction in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and
Africa over the past 15 years,” the statement says.
Following the inclusion, Uzbekistan will become the only CIS
country whose local-currency sovereign bonds are included in the
GBI-EM index.
The GBI-EM is a major benchmark for emerging-market government
bonds denominated in local currencies. International investors
managing more than $300 billion in assets use the index as a
reference in making investment decisions.
The index currently covers 20 emerging-market countries,
including 13 economies classified as investment grade.
The inclusion of Uzbekistan’s soum-denominated bonds is expected
to increase their visibility among international institutional
investors and further broaden access to global investment flows for
the country’s local-currency debt market.
