After last year’s closure of online payments and suspension of Paynet Beeline Uzbekistan, one of the main mobile operators of Uzbekistan, has signed up for the SMS-To’Lov (SMS-Payment) electronic payments system, TelecomPaper reports.

According to Beeline Uzbekistan, this will enable customers to use their bank accounts to make online payments, including balance control and credits loading, arranging services they need.

“Cutomers can activate and access their ccounts for free, without paying a penny as a fee,” says Rustamjon, operator at one of the branches of Beeline Uzbekistan.

The only thing that bothers me is that how long customers will enjoy freedom of using their own money from their bank accounts. Since there is no guarantee that in a couple months or years the system will be inspected by some tax-guys, and found illelgal-corrupt-money-laundering-and-blah-blah-blah.

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Cash-hungry Kyrgyz government is seeking ways to ease its budget deficit and find investments into revolution-tired economy. Kyrgyzstan decided to become member of the Customs Union by Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus.

The new era of economic relations between the Kyrgyz Republic and the Russian Federation has began. At least according to the statements of the Prime minister of Kyrgyzstan.
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I have already mentioned briefly about a rising scandal around one of the largest markets in almost downtown Bishkek – Osh bazaar (Google map link).  New mayor of Bishkek, Isa Omurkulov, set out to clean the market area, which has been populated by small kiosks with little control, and free some space for construction of car roads that would go through the market area.    It was planned to remove some 800 trading spots (kiosks, tables, booths), but it did not go as smooth as the mayor thought it would. Read the full story »

Seems like business in Tashkent experiences really difficult times. After Demir and Turkuaz, Turkish shopping and entertainment giants, had fallen, Tashkent businessmen at local markets and bazaars witnessed unlawful actions by law-enforcement and governmental executive bodies.

Zheleznyi bazar (Metal market), Yunusabad, Parkent… The list is becoming bigger week after week, if not day by day.

Today’s news on a closure of a clothes market of a popular Alaysky bazaar in a center of Tashkent added more of a negative feeling of uncertainess about what people and business owners should expect: Who’s next in our SNB-MVD-Tax Committee-Customs-Prosecutor’s Office-list? Read the full story »

On my way back from the Tashkent International Airport the taxi driver got pissed at the roads being temporarily closed due to the tram lines removal.

- It’s so stupid when they close the road and do nothing!
- What you mean?
- They closed this road few weeks ago and never really worked hard to get the lines removed and road fixed afterwards! They will probably wait till Independence Day and will impose it as a “fresh” project so that President would praise their hardworking! Of course, everything is for the X-day (Independence Day)!

And then he told me a funny story about Uzbek construction companies:

When Americans planned to construct a large building in the United States they approached Germans to find out how much time they would need to realize the project. Read the full story »

In connection to my previous post regarding making business in Kyrgyzstan, I would like to share this video that went viral via social networks and blogs.   It’s a commercial of one of the Russian companies that offer their assistance for western businesses to enter Russian market.  They position Russian market as “you never know” market, where rules are never set in stone.  I thought that if you replaced the word  ”Russia” with “Kyrgyzstan”, “Kazakhstan” or any other CA country name, the video would still be relevant.  Enjoy!

A typical T-72. Photograph by Flickr user Jeffrey Jose (CC-usage).

I’ve been watching events in the Middle East with the same frolicking glee as what went down in Kyrgyzstan last year, but Libya has really caught my attention. The bazookas of Kyrgyz revolutionaries may have shot mostly tulips, but the Libyans on either side of the Gulf of Sirte packing real fire-power. What I’m wondering is how much of that has come from Kazakhstan.

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Translation of Mirbek’s post (RUS)

Azamat Murzaliev: “The numbers [see below] are based on documented evidence obtained as part of the company’s internal audit. These figures may change should additional or new information come to light. […] At the moment, the company’s financial operations are being audited by Ernst & Young and separate audit for fraud is being carried out by the independent international company KPMG.”

Alpha Telecom, it turns out, employed a number of embezzlement schemes:

1) Using front companies that would submit invoices for services they never performed, or using affiliated companies whose delivery of services has been called into question.

Total: $4,224,801 Read the full story »

For the last several days, one of the largest cellular operators and taxpayers of Kyrgyzstan – MegaCom (Alfa Telecom) – has changed its CEO three times.  The company has fallen victim of the nationalization process that was launched immediately after the April revolution.  However, nationalization without clear national government led to the situation when all interested parties are trying to get a piece of the pie.   Read the full story »

More than 4 million residential and business consumers of electricity in the South-Western part of Uzbekistan will have better access to reliable electricity supply thanks to World Bank financing, WB press-service reports.

The World Bank’s Board of Directors today approved a US$ 110 million IBRD loan for Uzbekistan’s Talimarjan Transmission Project. The Project aims at improving the reliability of the electricity supply in four regions of Uzbekistan including Samarkand, Kashkadarya, Navoyi, and Bukhara regions. This will be achieved by strengthening the network and reducing transmission losses.

The country’s electric power sector is key to the Government of Uzbekistan’s welfare improvement strategy (WIS); it seeks to sustain growth, reduce poverty and raise living standards through regional development. To achieve these goals, the WIS aims to improve the power supply in the country and efficiency of the energy sector utilities. The Bank’s Country Assistance Strategy (CAS) for the period covering fiscal years 2008-2011 supports these efforts of the Government.

At present, significant potential exists for increasing electricity exports, which would promote the country’s economic growth. Since January 2009, the country has been exporting about 150 MW of electricity to Afghanistan. This is expected to increase to 300 MW in future years with further development of Afghanistan’s power system. Read the full story »