Uzbekistan has moved ahead with the privatisation of the National Interbank Processing Centre (HUMO), selling 100% of its shares as part of the government's plan to stimulate growth in the fintech sector.

In an open sales procedure, six companies were invited to submit binding offers (BO) following the signing of a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). 

Participants were given access to in-depth due diligence reports, prepared by international consultancy Deloitte, covering HUMO’s financial, tax, legal and environmental statuses. There were direct meetings with the company’s management team.

According to a statement from the State Assets Management Agency (UzSAMA), the applicants also received a term sheet outlining the sale conditions, published last September 30. 

Ultimately, three companies submitted BOs, and the highest offer of $65mn was submitted by Paynet, a payment operator in Uzbekistan.

The sale price met the valuation range set by Deloitte and exceeded the assessment made by international independent appraiser KPMG. 

The decision on the winning bid was finalised after an approval from the state commission responsible for overseeing the privatisation of state assets and coordinating the process.

Paynet, with 18 years of experience in fintech, was selected as the winning bidder. The company, one of Uzbekistan’s largest payment operators, facilitates payments for over 1,500 providers and serves more than 20mn users annually.

Paynet has committed to ensuring the stable operation of the HUMO payment system, protecting users' personal and banking information, and maintaining its integrity as part of Uzbekistan’s national payment infrastructure.

Kaspi.kz, Kazakhstan's leading fintech firm and listed on the Nasdaq, had expressed interest in acquiring the full state-owned stake in HUMO. 

HUMO was established in September 2018 to address the lack of a state processing centre for retail payments, which led to security concerns and monopolisation. Concerns emerged after a software failure at the previous processing centre, UzCard. 

There is a need to decentralise payments and prevent market monopolies, empowering banks to operate independently. 

By November 2023, the state's share in HUMO was transferred to UzSAMA, and in April 2024, Humo was included on a list of companies to be privatised through public auction.