The sale of the state-owned mobile operator MobiUz to an American investment consortium could become one of the most significant investment deals in Central Asia in recent years. This opinion was expressed by Anna Bodrova, noting that the deal's importance extends far beyond the telecommunications industry.
According to her, particular attention is drawn not only to the purchase price of $351 million but also to the investor's commitment to invest an additional $500 million in infrastructure development. This volume of investment significantly exceeds the value of the asset itself and indicates the long-term plans of the new owner, who expects further growth in Uzbekistan's telecommunications market.
The analyst also emphasized the high level of competition and transparency in the privatization process. In her opinion, this demonstrates the growing confidence of foreign investors in Uzbek assets and confirms the country's integration into the global capital market. Furthermore, attracting a strategic investor will accelerate infrastructure modernization without additional burden on the state budget. Against the backdrop of an improved sovereign rating outlook for Uzbekistan from Fitch Ratings, such deals could provide an additional impetus for the inflow of foreign capital into other sectors of the country's economy.