The key facts

  • ABB acquired 51% of Davr Bank's shares; the transaction was registered on the Tashkent Stock Exchange on 10 September 2026
  • Davr Bank serves more than 2 million clients, holds assets of over $2 billion, and has 43 branches
  • S&P upgraded the bank's rating from B to B+; ABB's ratings (BB+ from Fitch, Ba1 from Moody's) are higher than Uzbekistan's sovereign ratings

The deal and the project launch

Azerbaijan's ABB Financial Group has officially entered Uzbekistan's banking market. The ceremonial launch of the ABB Davr Bank project took place in Tashkent on 23 August as part of a ceremony marking the start of projects implemented by Azerbaijan in Uzbekistan, with online participation of the presidents of both countries, Ilham Aliyev and Shavkat Mirziyoyev. This is reported by euronews.

Terms of the acquisition and the scale of Davr Bank

ABB has successfully completed the purchase of a controlling stake in Davr Bank: the transaction was registered on the Tashkent Stock Exchange on 10 September 2026. Under the terms of the agreement, ABB acquired 51 million ordinary shares, corresponding to 51% of the bank's charter capital. The deal is described as a step toward the geographic expansion goals set out in ABB's 2026–2028 development strategy. Davr Bank will continue operating under the ABB DAVR brand as a universal bank serving individuals, small and medium-sized businesses, and corporate clients.

The bank's performance and ratings

At the time of publication, the bank served more than 2 million clients, employed over 1,800 staff, and had a network of 43 branches and service centers in the capital and the regions; total assets exceed the equivalent of $2 billion, and the bank holds strong positions in SME financing. After control passed to ABB, the bank's international ratings began to rise: S&P Global Ratings upgraded the long-term credit rating from B to B+ with a

Strategy and technological base

ABB Chairman of the Board Abbas Ibrahimov named the creation of one of Uzbekistan's leading modern private banks as the goal and stated that the group will now serve around 5.5 million clients, increasing its potential reach from roughly 10 million to 50 million people. According to him, digital solutions, AI models, risk management and corporate governance systems proven in Azerbaijan are being transferred abroad. According to ABB's 2025 sustainability report, about 90% of the bank's operations are paperless, and as of August 2026 the bank was using more than 180 AI models in over 86 scenarios with a positive financial effect exceeding 50 million manats. The bank's data center hosts a high-performance AI server on the Dell PowerEdge XE9780 platform with eight NVIDIA HGX B200 accelerators, enabling sensitive data to be processed within the country.

Financing and regional context

The expansion is backed by international financing: ABB recently raised a syndicated loan of $230 million (€200 million) from 12 financial institutions from Europe and the UAE, following a similar $200 million (€170 million) deal in 2025. The publication notes that more than 470 companies with Azerbaijani capital are registered in Uzbekistan, and over 130 companies with Uzbek capital in Azerbaijan; ABB DAVR is positioned as a