The OTP/Ipoteka Deal: The Significance of a Hungarian Bank's Expansion into Uzbekistan

How is Hungary’s engagement with Central Asia going? This paper looks at a single, albeit important, commercial transaction - the acquisition of Uzbekistan’s Ipoteka Bank in late 2023 by Hungary’s OTP Group. Hungary’s diplomatic outreach through its Observer status at the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) coincided with a move by Uzbekistan’s government to liberalise the economy - through promotion of trade, investment links and privatisations. However, this merely provided a favourable background for the transaction. This paper explains the results that has been achieved by Ipoteka since it came under control of OTP about three years ago. It concludes by explaining the broader significance of the OTP/ Ipoteka deal.