At TIIF 2026, Uzbekistan signaled its intent to become a regional hub for Islamic financial services as part of its long-term economic strategy, aiming to tap new financing sources and integrate more closely into global capital markets. With the global Islamic finance market now worth roughly $4 trillion, Uzbekistan sees an opportunity to diversify funding for infrastructure, industrial, and energy projects. Years of regulatory groundwork including banking sector reforms, new instruments, and a developing supervisory framework are laying the base, with particular focus on sukuk bonds as a tool for financing major infrastructure. Gulf investors, especially from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, are seen as key targets, with several Gulf financial institutions already involved in Uzbek infrastructure, energy, and real estate projects. The push is framed as part of Uzbekistan's broader economic diversification and private-sector expansion agenda.

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