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ANALYTICAL OVERVIEW OF THE INSURANCE MARKET OF UZBEKISTAN
PhD
Umarov Hasan
Westminster International University in Tashkent
ORCID: 0000-0001-5852-9669
Buriev Abdul Aziz
Westminster International University in Tashkent
ORCID: 0009-0006-6757-5361
PhD
Hamid Waqas
Westminster International University in Tashkent
ORCID: 0000-0003-1319-533X
Abstract.
This article is devoted to the analysis of the state of the modern insurance market
of Uzbekistan, which is characterized by the growth of the volume of operations, emergence of
new directions of insurance activity, aggravation of competition and strengthening of the role of
insurance regulator to the situation in the market. It considers the results of the insurance market
for the last 4 years, including its main financial indicators and changes in the composition of the
main market participants, the policy pursued by the government aimed at raising the insurance
market to a new qualitative level and new prospects of development in the conditions of
sustainable economic growth of the country.
Keywords:
Uzbekistan, insurance market, insurance premium volume, reinsurance,
regulation.
OʻZBEKISTON SUGʻURTA BOZORINING TAHLILIK SHARHI
i.f.n.
Umarov Xasan
Toshkent Xalqaro Vestminster universiteti
Buriev Abdul Aziz
Toshkent Xalqaro Vestminster universiteti
i.f.n.
Hamid Waqas
Toshkent Xalqaro Vestminster universiteti
Annotatsiya
.
Ushbu maqola Oʻzbekistonning zamonaviy sugʻurta bozori holatini tahlil
qilishga bagʻishlangan boʻlib, u bitimlar hajmining oʻsishi, sugʻurta faoliyatining yangi
yoʻnalishlarining paydo boʻlishi, raqobatning kuchayishi va bozordagi vaziyatda sugʻurta
regulyatori rolining kuchayishi bilan tavsiflanadi. Unda sugʻurta bozorining soʻnggi 4 yildagi
natijalari, jumladan, sugʻurta bozorining asosiy ishtirokchilari tarkibi va uning asosiy moliyaviy
koʻrsatkichlaridagi
oʻzgarishlar, davlat tomonidan sugʻurta bozorini yangi sifat darajasiga
koʻtarishga qaratilgan siyosati va mamlakatimiz iqtisodiyotining barqaror oʻsishi sharoitida
yangi rivojlanish istiqbollari koʻrib chiqilgan.
Kalit soʻzlar:
Oʻzbekiston, sugʻurta bozori, sugʻurta mukofotlari hajmi, qayta sugʻurtalash,
qonunchilikdagi oʻzgarishlar.
UO‘K:
368.912
IV SON - APREL, 2025
244-251
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245
АНАЛИТИЧЕСКИЙ ОБЗОР СТРАХОВОГО РЫНКА УЗБЕКИСТАНА
к.э.н.
Умаров Хасан
Международный Вестминстерский университет в городе Ташкенте
Буриев Абдул Азиз
Международный Вестминстерский университет в городе Ташкенте
к.э.н.
Хамид Вакас
Международный Вестминстерский университет в городе Ташкенте
Аннотация
.
Данная статья посвящена анализу состояния современного
страхового рынка Узбекистана, который характеризуется ростом объемов операций,
появлением новых направлений страховой деятельности, обострением конкуренции и
усилением роли страхового регулятора к ситуации на рынке. В ней рассматриваются
результаты страхового рынка за последние 4 года, включая изменение состава основных
рыночных участников страхового рынка и основных его финансовых показателей,
проводимая государством политика, направленная на повышение страхового рынка на
новый качественный уровень и новые перспективы развития в условиях устойчивого
экономического роста страны.
Ключевые слова:
Узбекистан, страховой рынок, объем страховых премий,
перестрахование, законодательные изменения.
Introduction.
The current policy in Uzbekistan, focused on the continued modernization of industries,
contributes to maintaining economic stability and achieving strong growth. As a result of
proactive government initiatives, the insurance sector has undergone a significant
transformation and is now recognized as one of the fastest-growing industries in the country.
The state is taking active measures aimed at further formation of a competitive market of
insurance services, improvement of the legal framework and development of modern types of
insurance. Although, the market needs further structural improvements, including enhanced
underwriting standards and better risk diversification, increase of public awareness about
insurance benefits, improvement of solvency positions of insurers.
Literature review.
Several scholars have addressed recent regulatory developments in insurance legislation,
the Uzbek government’s digitalization initiatives and the evolving dynamics of the national
insurance market. Notably, in the works of
Azimov “Problems of digitalization of insurance
business in Uzbekistan”, “The role and place of compulsory and voluntary types of insurance in
the development of the national insurance model in Uzbekistan”, there were analyzed ongoing
digitalization efforts in the insurance market of Uzbekistan in accordance with Decree of the
President of the Republic of Uzbekistan № PP
-
5265 dated 23.10.2021 “On additional measures
on digitalization of the insurance market and development of the life insurance sector”,
importance of development of digitalized insurance products following active marketing
campaigns among population to increase public awareness about features and benefits of
insurance as well as development of voluntary insurance.
Abduraximova in her study “Prospects for further development of the insurance market
in Uzbekistan” emphasizes the profound impact of financial technologies on the insurance
industry, transforming the way services are delivered to consumers. She advocates for
enhancing market competition by allowing foreign insurance companies to establish branches
in Uzbekistan and stresses the need to ensure that all insurers are members of the Payment
Guarantee Fund to safeguard consumer interests. The same proposals are offered by Nomozova
in her work “Prospects for the development of business risk insurance in Uzbekistan”.
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Former head of the insurance supervisory authority
–
the Agency for the Development of
the Insurance Market of Uzbekistan
–
Talipov, in his article “The future of the insurance
industry lies in the hands of
qualified personnel” highlights the acute shortage of highly
qualified actuaries and other skilled insurance professionals in the local market. In light of 2023
being declared as the “Year of Attention to People and Quality Education”, he underscores the
A
gency’s strategic objectives, which include organizing training courses for actuarial
certification, developing educational programs for insurance agents under the Professional
Association of the Insurance Market of Uzbekistan, launching reinsurance training courses in
partnership with the UK’s Chartered Insurance Institute (CII).
In addition, official website of the insurance supervisory div of Uzbekistan, including its
annual reports, provides statistical data, general information on the development of the
insurance market of Uzbekistan.
Research methodology.
The methods of logical and structural analysis, grouping, economic and statistical
analysis, mutual and comparative comparison were effectively used in the realization of the set
research objectives.
Analysis and discussion of results.
The insurance market of Uzbekistan has been growing very rapidly over the past four
years, demonstrating a significant growth in both quantitative and qualitative terms. This is
driven broadly across all lines of business, supported by inflow of foreign investments, a
construction boom, the relocation of Russian companies to Uzbekistan and rising income levels
of population.
Table 1
Main indicators of the insurance market of Uzbekistan
for the period 2021-2024 (in bln. UZS)
2021
2022
2023
2024
Insurance premiums
3 732
6 232
8 060
9 770
Insurance premiums growth (%)
69
67
29
21
Share of compulsory insurance (%)
13
8
8
7
Share of voluntary insurance (%)
87
92
92
93
Share of non-life insurance (%)
81
76
96
97
Share of life insurance (%)
19
24
4
3
Insurance payments
1 235
2 597
2 022
2 205
Insurance payments growth (%)
68
110
-22
9
Share of compulsory insurance (%)
15
9
12
17
Share of voluntary insurance (%)
85
91
88
83
Share of non-life insurance (%)
50
42
78
78
Share of life insurance (%)
50
58
22
22
Total paid-up capital
1 590
1 884
2 299
2 964
Total investments
3 747
4 752
6 150
6 543
Source
:
prepared by the authors based on annual reports, statistical information of the insurance
regulator of Uzbekistan for the period 2021-2024.
As it can be seen from the Table 1, in 2024 total insurance premium income, including life
insurance, amounted 9 770 bln. UZS, growth of 21% over 2023 in local currency terms. General
(non-life) insurance sector accounted for more than 97% of the total ins
urance industry’s gross
written premium, which is typical for young and developing insurance markets where life
insurance penetration remains quite low. During 2021-2024 compound annual growth rate
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(CAGR) of the insurance market of Uzbekistan reached 27,2% and it is expected that the market
will achieve a CAGR of more than 10% during 2024-2027.
In terms of insurance payments, the market experienced a significant decrease in growth
in 2024, reaching only 9%, and even recorded a decline of 22% in 2023. This was primarily
explained by the removal of the personal income tax exemption allocated to long-term life
insurance contracts, which led to a sharp drop in the volume of business for life insurers and,
consequently, a decrease in their payout activity.
As of end of 2024, the insurance market of Uzbekistan included 33 insurance companies.
Five years earlier, the market was predominantly led by state-owned insurers such as
Uzbekinvest, Kafolat, and Uzagrosugurta, which collectively held around 35
–
40% of the market
share. However, in 2024, only one state-owned company
–
Uzbekinvest
–
remained among the
TOP-5 insurers, securing the second place (see Table 2).
For the second consecutive year, Apex Insurance maintained its position as the absolute
market leader, capturing 28% of the total market share. The TOP-3 market leaders are rounded
out by Kafolat, which has significantly strengthened its position in 2024 following its earlier
privatization, carried out in accordance with the Decree of the President of the Republic of
Uzbekistan dated February 11, 2021 No.UP-
6167 “On measures to further accelerate the
processes of privatization of state assets”.
Table 2
The biggest insurance companies of the Uzbek insurance market
Insurance premium (in
bln. UZS)
Share of inward reinsurance
premium (%)
International rating
2023
2024
2023
2024
Level
Outlook
1
APEX Insurance
2 011
2 758
8
10
BB- (S&P)
Stable
2
Uzbekinvest
1 234
1 271
56
64
Ba2
(Moody’s)
Stable
3
Kafolat
704
739
77
63
B+ (Fitch)
Negative
4
GROSS
450
623
19
34
B+ (Fitch)
Stable
5
My Insurance
338
430
0
0
B2
(Moody’s)
Stable
6
Uzagrosugurta
393
418
59
64
BB- (Fitch)
Negative
7
Kapital-
Sug’urta
300
367
20
7
B- (Fitch)
Stable
8
Temiryo’l
-
Sug’urta
255
302
44
33
B (S&P)
Stable
9
Kafil Sug’urta
178
289
0
22
B2
(Moody’s)
Stable
10
Alfa Invest
235
268
44
21
B2
(Moody’s)
Stable
Source:
prepared by the authors based on figures of National Agency of Perspective Projects and
corporate web-sites of insurance companies.
What’s remarkable about the Uzbek insurance market is that most of insurance
companies are highly engaged in inward reinsurance business (more than 60% is coming from
abroad). Currently, all of the TOP-10 insurance companies hold international ratings from
global rating agencies. This move is aimed at fostering collaboration with foreign insurers in
the area of reinsuring risks. Some insurance companies, like Uzbekinvest, Kafolat,
Uzagrosugurta generated more than 50% of their revenues from inward reinsurance activities.
The expansion of inward reinsurance business by local insurers is also driven by intense
competition for commercial accounts within the domestic market, which continues to be
dominated by corporate clients, while the retail segment remains largely underdeveloped.
As part of comprehensive reforms in the market, in September 2023 insurance regulatory
authorities were transferred from the Agency for Insurance Market Development under the
Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the National Agency for Perspective
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Projects (NAPP). Initially established to oversee digitalization and the crypto market, NAPP
started applying its progressive regulatory approach to the insurance industry from the very
beginning. It demonstrated a strong commitment to enhancing industry regulatory
requirements and revoked licenses of several insurance companies due to non-compliance with
regulatory standards. As a result, number of insurance companies decreased from 42 as of end
September 2023 down to 33 as of end December 2024 (see Table 3).
Table 3
Number of the Uzbek insurance market participants
2021
2022
2023
2024
Number of insurance companies
42
41
38
33
Non-life insurance
34
33
31
28
Life insurance
8
8
7
5
Insurance brokers
5
7
8
11
Actuaries
5
5
5
5
Insurance agents
9 581
9 155
4 736
4 804
Source
:
prepared by the authors based on figures of National Agency of Perspective Projects.
At the beginning of 2024, NAPP developed a significant document
–
“Comprehensive
Measures for the Further Development of the Insurance Market” –
approved under the
Presidential Resolution No. 108 on 01.03.2024. This document is aimed at further increasing
the level of digitalization in the insurance industry, market capitalization, introduction of
several types of insurances based on best world practices (including takaful insurance, green
insurance, voluntary medical insurance, imputed insurance), etc.
In particular, all insurance policies are issued electronically and registered in unified
electronic system from September 01, 2024. Since January 2025, NAPP started a practice of
publishing its own ratings on insurance companies, affirmed based on 19 criteria such as timely
settlement of claims, handling of customers’ claimants, loss ratio, solvency margin, investment
income and others.
It’s worth mentioning that NAPP is planning to revise several legal acts, governing
insurance reserves, actuarial services, investment activities of insurers. That includes
development of proposals on bringing the methodology of formation of insurance reserves and
determination of insurers' solvency in compliance with Solvency II standards. NAPP, as part of
the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), has an access to the insurance
legislation of all IAIS member states, which makes it possible for the insurance regulator to
harmonize insurance legislation in Uzbekistan with international standards.
The most significant reform is the substantial increase in minimum capital requirements,
which will be implemented in three phases
—
starting in October of this year, then in October
2027, and finally in October 2029 (see Table 4). By the end of this process, capital requirements
are expected to triple. Uzbekistan has been steadily raising capital thresholds, with previous
increases in 2020 and 2022. These regulatory changes aim to strengthen insurers' solvency and
may also result a consolidation among the numerous small insurers operating in the insurance
market.
Despite all these positive results and regulatory changes, the insurance market of
Uzbekistan is still in the early stages of its development and remains far from reaching its full
potential. There are several key indicators that reflect the strength and development of the
insurance market, including the loss ratio (measured as insurance premiums divided to
insurance payments), insurance density (measured as insurance premiums divided to
population) and the penetration of the insurance industry (measured as insurance premiums
as a percentage of GDP). These ratios vary considerably around the world with generally higher
levels in more advanced and wealthier economies.
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Table 4
Minimum capital requirements for insurers of Uzbekistan (in bln. UZS)
Current
level
From
01.10.2025
From
01.10.2027
From
01.10.2029
Insurers, engaged in
voluntary insurance
20
35
45
60
Insurers, engaged in
compulsory insurance
35
50
75
100
Insurers, engaged in
reinsurance
45
80
100
120
Source
:
Presidential Resolution No. 108 dated 01.03.2024 on “Comprehensive Measures for the
Further Development of the Insurance Market”.
According to OECD, the global average market levels are 60%, 900 USD and 5%
respectively. The Uzbek insurance market, however, had significantly lower levels
–
reflecting
its status as an emerging market
–
with insurance density around 20 USD, penetration level
below 1% and a fluctuating loss ratio of around 30% for the last 4 years.
Table 5
Key market indicators of the insurance market of Uzbekistan
for the period 2021-2024
2021
2022
2023
2024
GDP growth of Uzbekistan (%)
7.4
5.7
6.3
6.5
Inflation rate (%)
10.0
12.3
8.8
9.8
Population (in mln.)
34.6
35.3
36.8
37.5
Loss ratio (%)
33
42
25
23
Insurance density (in UZS)
107 990
176 680
219 015
260 236
Insurance penetration rate (%)
0.51
0.70
0.68
0.67
Source
:
prepared by the authors based on figures from National Statistics Committee of the Republic
of Uzbekistan and annual reports of the insurance regulator of Uzbekistan for the period 2021-2024.
These indicators highlight a significant gap between Uzbek insurance market and global
benchmarks, which can be attributed to several factors, including:
- low public awareness about insurance benefits and mechanisms;
- negative personal experience of people, especially with widely-used, but low-margin
insurance products for insurers, such as compulsory motor third-party liability insurance
(commonly referred to as “OSAGO”) largely due to the overly complex and bureaucr
atic nature
of the claims settlement process;
- a shortage of insurance products tailored to individual needs of people or a lack of
incentive for consumers to purchase them (e.g. voluntary medical insurance, long-term life
insurance, takaful insurance, etc.);
- acute shortage of actuaries, highly qualified underwriters that limits the development of
sound pricing strategies and proper risk assessment (especially the foreign risks, coming via
reinsurance);
- low income level of most part of population;
- under-developed distribution channels (brokers, bancassurance, mobile applications),
with a strong reliance on traditional sales methods.
In order to foster sustainable growth of the insurance sector in Uzbekistan, in our opinion,
it is necessary to enhance financial literacy and public trust on insurance through targeted
awareness campaigns, educational programs and transparent communication from insurers.
According to publicly available information, only a limited number of universities in Uzbekistan
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250
offer insurance-related courses or modules as part of their academic programs, including
Tashkent State University of Economics, National University of Uzbekistan, The Banking and
Finance Academy and Westminster International University in Tashkent.
“Mahalla”, as a good community
-based self-governance system of Uzbekistan, can play a
vital role in facilitating communication between insurers and individuals and it may also
provide a foundation for introducing mutual insurance schemes, where community members
collectively contribute to a common risk pool. These schemes can provide protection against
common local risks (natural disasters, property damage, etc.), especially in areas where access
to formal insurance is limited. Such initiatives can increase insurance penetration, promote
solidarity-based financial protection, and even develop new insurance products based on
mutual insurance principles. Takaful insurance (or Islamic insurance), based on the principles
of mutual assistance and shared responsibility, fully aligns with community-based models like
those supported by mahallas and has a huge potential to effectively extend insurance coverage
to Muslim populations with strong religious and cultural values.
Promotion of digitalization of insurance by encouraging insurers to adopt digital
platforms for purchasing insurance, claims processing, offering additional online customer
services can support the development of the insurance market in general. Especially,
digitalization can significantly contribute to the development of life insurance, as it enables
individuals to actively engage with personalized digital tools tailored to their specific insurance
needs and preferences. It can also decrease distribution and administrative costs of insurance
companies, allowing them to improve their profitability, lower costs of insurance for customers,
develop new types of insurance.
In our opinion, these some measures could further enhance the level of development of
insurance market of Uzbekistan, making it more resilient, inclusive, and competitive that would
contribute to the country’s economic growth and financial security of its
individuals and
businesses. Moreover, the advancement of the insurance market can support Uzbekistan in
achieving several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 10 (Reduced
Inequalities) by expanding access to financial protection for under-served populations,
reducing vulnerability to economic shocks and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions)
via promotion of transparent, accountable, and efficient insurance regulation and the
establishment of trust between insurers and the public.
Conclusions and suggestions.
The insurance market of Uzbekistan has experienced significant growth and
transformation over the past few years, driven by economic growth, increased foreign
investment and regulatory reforms. The industry is becoming more concentrated upon growth
of competition and stricter compliance by the insurance supervisory div, local insurers are
expanding participation in international reinsurance. The implementation of new capital
requirements, regulatory improvements and launch of innovative insurance products will
further strengthen the position of the insurance market.
However, several challenges continue to hinder progress. These include low public
awareness and financial literacy, a shortage of skilled insurance professionals, underdeveloped
distribution channels, and a lack of personalized insurance solutions. To address these
obstacles, it is important to promote financial education among population and transparency
on the side of insurance companies, leverage the role of mahallas to develop mutual insurance
and takaful insurance models, encourage insurers to accelerate digital transformation for
simplification of business processes and improvement of customer services. Successful
implementation of these measures will help to strengthen the local insurance market, which
can contribute to the socio-economic development of the country and increase the level of
financial protection of its citizens.
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