“Ipoteka-bank” of Uzbekistan was sold

Uzbek bank "Ipoteka-bank" was bought by One Time Password group with its headquarters in Hungary.  This was reported by the Ministry of Finance.

After the memorandum of agreement signed in September of last year, a sale and purchase agreement on the privatization of "Ipoteka-bank" bank was signed in Tashkent on behalf of One Time Password bank.  The document was signed by the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of OTP Bank Shandor Chani and Deputy General Director Laszlo Wolff, as well as the Minister of Finance Timur Ishmetov on behalf of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade on behalf of the Republic of Uzbekistan Signed by Jamshid Khojayev.

It is noted that OTP Bank will buy 100% of the shares belonging to the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan (about 97% of the total package of shares) in two stages: 75% of the shares now, and the remaining 25% - three years after the financial closing of the first transaction.

"Financial closing of the first transaction is expected to take place in the first half of 2023," the Ministry of Finance said.

In terms of assets, Ipoteka-bank is the fifth largest bank in Uzbekistan with a market share of 8.5%, more than 1.6 million retail customers, 39 branches acting as regional centers, 193 customer services showrooms, and important corporate customers. In line with the rapid growth of the domestic banking sector, the bank's assets have grown by an average of 20% per year in the loan portfolio and 24% in the deposit portfolio over the past three years.

OTP Group is one of the leading financial groups in the Central and Eastern European region, with growth performance, excellent profitability, and a stable position in terms of capital and liquidity. With around 36,000 employees in 11 countries, the group provides universal financial services to almost 16 million customers. As the most active consolidator in the region's banking sector, the group has acquired and merged 23 banks since the early 2000s.  The bank is currently said to be the market leader in Hungary, Bulgaria, Serbia, and Montenegro.  The headquarters of OTP Group is located in Hungary.  The bank group has been listed on the Budapest Stock Exchange since 1995.