Apple Pay and Google Pay launched in Uzbekistan: which banks support the services

The launch and who can use it

On October 27 the head of the Administration of the President of Uzbekistan, Saida Mirziyoyeva, announced that Apple Pay and Google Pay have become available for cards issued by local banks. Euronews reported this, citing her statement. A month earlier, Mirziyoyeva met in New York with Google Vice President Karan Bhatia, where technological cooperation and the conditions for international payment services to operate in the country were discussed.

Which banks are connected

At launch, Apple Pay works with Visa and Mastercard cards from eight banks: Uzum Bank, Orient Finans Bank, the National Bank of Uzbekistan (NBU), Kapitalbank, Hamkorbank, Ipak Yuli Bank, TBC Bank and Octobank; however, Uzum Bank and Hamkorbank currently support only Visa. The Google Pay list is different: nine banks — AVO Bank, Octobank, Uzum Bank, TBC Bank, Aloqabank, Kapitalbank, Ipak Yuli Bank, NBU and Orient Finans Bank. Thus, Aloqabank and AVO Bank appear only in the Google Pay list, while Hamkorbank appears only in the Apple Pay list. Customers are advised to check with their banks which cards are eligible for linking.

What has changed compared to the previous situation

Mobile and contactless payments in Uzbekistan were already available earlier through the national services HUMO Pay and UZCARD PAY, as well as via QR code. What is new is that holders of eligible local cards can now use international platforms, not only domestic solutions. According to Central Bank data cited by Euronews, both services protect card data during transactions, while cashback and other bonuses depend on the terms of the specific banks.

Regulatory context and what comes next

The launch was preceded by March 2026 amendments to personal data legislation that eased restrictions on processing and storing certain categories of data abroad; at a September meeting, Mirziyoyeva directly linked these changes to the introduction of international payment systems. The events coincided with the National Fintech Strategy for 2026–2030 approved by the Central Bank in September, which provides for attracting investment, developing cross-border payments, Open Banking and improving the connectivity of financial systems. The Central Bank also confirmed in a written response to Euronews that work is underway to extend the services to cards of the national payment systems Uzcard and HUMO, but no timeline was given — meaning that so far only Visa and Mastercard cards are connected, and coverage of national cards remains an open question.