Largest Hungarian bank expands in a surprising country

OTP Bank has acquired a stake in the Uzbek Ipoteka Bank. With this, the bank of the 2nd richest Hungarian entered the Central Asian market. The bank led by Sándor Csányi is the first foreign player to participate in the privatisation of the Uzbek banking sector.

From today, OTP Bank is the majority owner of Ipoteka Bank. The bank is Uzbekistan’s fifth largest financial services provider. This makes Csányi’s bank the first foreign player to participate in the privatisation of the Uzbek banking sector, Forbes reports. The first step of the acquisition has now been completed, the bank said in a press release.

OTP bought 75 percent of the shares owned by the Uzbek Ministry of Economy and Finance. In the second step, the remaining 25 percent will be purchased in three years. Uzbekistan is the first Central Asian country where the OTP Group starts operations.

OTP Bank has been in talks with the Uzbek government since the end of 2020 on the possibility of participating in the privatisation of the Uzbek banking sector. The parties signed a sale and purchase agreement for Ipoteka Bank in December 2022 in Tashkent. Under the agreement, OTP Bank will acquire 100 percent of the shares owned by the Uzbek Ministry of Economy and Finance in two stages. This will amount to approximately 98 percent of the total stake.

Sándor Csányi is currently the second richest person in Hungary, only preceded by Lőrinc Mészáros. You can find this year’s list of the richest Hungarians HERE.