The key facts

  • On October 19, 2026, Google announced the launch of Google Pay in Uzbekistan at the C5+1 session in Samarkand
  • The announcement was made by Marcin Krasuski, Google Cloud director for government affairs in Central and Eastern Europe
  • The launch was preceded by changes to personal data legislation signed on March 26, 2026

Announcement of the launch

On October 19, 2026, at the “Digital Technologies” panel session held in Samarkand as part of the C5+1 format events between the Central Asian countries and the United States, the launch of the Google Pay payment service in Uzbekistan was announced. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Digital Technologies and several Uzbek publications. A video of the speech was published on the ministry’s Telegram channel.

Google’s statement

The launch was announced by Marcin Krasuski (in some publications — Marcin Krasuski), Google Cloud director for government affairs and public policy in Central and Eastern Europe. “I am very pleased to announce that today Google is launching the GPay service — Google Pay — in Uzbekistan,” he said. According to him, the launch was made possible by “progressive regulation in the digital sphere”; he also called Uzbekistan one of the leading countries in digital regulation. The speech was met with applause from those present. The session is attended by representatives of government agencies of the Central Asian countries and the United States, as well as leading companies.

What is Google Pay

Google Pay is a payment service by Google that allows paying for purchases and services using bank cards linked to a Google account. For contactless payments in stores on compatible Android smartphones, NFC technology is used; the service also works with smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches.

Changes to personal data legislation

The launch was preceded by a change in legislation. In 2021, an amendment to the law “On Personal Data” (Article 27-1) required companies to place in Uzbekistan the servers on which citizens’ personal data is processed. On March 26, 2026, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a law that removed the mandatory requirement to store all personal data on servers inside the country — it remained only for biometric and genetic data, as well as data of subscribers of telecom operators. Other personal data may be processed abroad provided the established conditions are met.

Background: negotiations and announcements

In November 2025, during a visit to the United States, Shavkat Mirziyoyev met with representatives of American companies, investment funds, and financial institutions and stated that updating the legislation would open the way for the launch of Apple Pay and Google Pay, the creation of a digital academy, and a network of startup hubs. At the end of July 2026, Jamshid Usmanov, head of the payment systems development department at the Central Bank, told Spot that Apple Pay and Google Pay could launch in the coming months: after the change in legislation, the Central Bank, together with commercial banks, Humo, and Uzcard, began negotiations with Apple and Google and the technical integration of the services. According to him, banks were working on card tokenization, and the regulator sought to ensure that not only Visa and Mastercard cards but also cards of the national payment systems Humo and Uzcard could be added to the services. Back in October 2024, the government instructed the Tourism Committee, the Central Bank, and the Ministry of Digital Technologies to hold negotiations on connecting Alipay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and UniPay to Uzbekistan’s payment systems.