The International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) has acquired a 51% stake in Uzbekistan's private Davr Bank. The deal took place on September 10 on the Tashkent Republican Stock Exchange, with a total value of 1.646 trillion soums or $139.5 million, according to Spot.
According to exchange data, IBA purchased 51 million ordinary shares of Davr Bank at 32,281.28 soums per share. The transaction was executed as a series of six consecutive deals. Based on the value of the sold 51% stake, the entire Davr Bank was valued at approximately 3.23 trillion soums or $273.6 million at the current exchange rate.
The completion of the deal was announced on August 23. It was mentioned in a video about joint Uzbek-Azerbaijani projects shown during a meeting between Presidents Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Ilham Aliyev. At that time, the leaders of the two countries participated in an online ceremony to open and lay the foundation for Azerbaijani investment projects in Uzbekistan. One of the three opened projects was Davr Bank. Ilham Aliyev then announced that "Azerbaijan's leading bank has entered the Uzbek market."
A day earlier, at the IV Forum of Regions of Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan in Tashkent, Azerbaijan's Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov noted that IBA was entering Uzbekistan's banking market by acquiring a stake in Davr Bank. On August 27, the Tashkent Republican Stock Exchange reported that after 5.5 years since the exclusion of Davr Bank's ordinary shares from the quotation list, trading in them had resumed. Securities with code UZ7050240009 were included in the listing under the ticker DRBK, with trading starting on August 28.
IBA's plans to acquire a controlling stake in Davr Bank became known in May. At that time, it was reported that Azerbaijan's state International Bank aimed to purchase 51% of the Uzbek bank's shares and enter the Uzbek market. The preliminary amount of the deal was estimated at more than $100 million. In June, Davr Bank shareholders approved continuing negotiations with IBA on the possible sale of a 51% stake.
The largest stake — 46.9% — belonged to Lutfullo Ubayev, Chairman of the Supervisory Board. Another 13.5% of shares were held by Makhfuza Ubayeva. The bank is headed by Abdumajid Samadov. Davr Bank has been operating in Uzbekistan since September 2001. As of July 1, the bank's assets amounted to 13.2 trillion soums, up 18.9% compared to July 2025. Liabilities reached 10.8 trillion soums (+14.8%), the loan portfolio was 9.3 trillion soums (+19.8%), and deposits were 4.9 trillion soums (+20.8%).
According to the results of 2025, Davr Bank's net profit amounted to 631.5 billion soums, which is 62% more than a year earlier. The International Bank of Azerbaijan ended 2025 with a net profit of 404.5 million manats (about $238 million), which is 12.4% more than last year's figure. IBA's loan portfolio grew by 12% over the year to over 7 billion manats ($4.1 billion), and the number of active customers increased by 15%.
Source: www.gazeta.uz