Published
06/18/2025, 12:34Over the past five years, foreign exchange operations have become one of the main sources of income for banks in Kyrgyzstan. In 2019, they accounted for only about 4% of the total income of the banking system, but by 2024, this figure had risen to 12.07%, or 33.3 billion KGS. Income from foreign currency operations has increased more than 19 times.
Revenues from foreign currency operations have increased for almost all banks. The absolute record belongs to Bakai Bank — its income from foreign currency rose nearly 71 times, from 100.7 million KGS in 2019 to 7.1 billion KGS in 2024. The Eurasian Development Bank saw a 60.6-fold increase — from 4.4 million to 264.3 million KGS. The top five in terms of growth also include state-owned banks Eldik and Aiyl, as well as the private bank Mbank.
At the end of last year, the top earners from foreign currency operations were four banks: Mbank (7.7 billion KGS), Bakai Bank (7.1 billion KGS), Eldik Bank (4.8 billion KGS), and Aiyl Bank (4.6 billion KGS).
Optima Bank, KICB and Demir Bank also reported significant income — each earning over 1 billion KGS. Back in 2019, the leaders in foreign currency profits were Optima Bank (251.7 million KGS), Mbank (194.5 million), and Demir Bank (183.6 million).
The growth in income from foreign currency operations is no coincidence. First, since 2019, the volume of money transfers to Kyrgyzstan has increased — from 2.4 billion USD to nearly 3 billion USD in 2024. The main flow comes from Kyrgyz citizens working in Russia. This money creates a steady demand for foreign currency, especially amid exchange rate fluctuations.
Secondly, banks have actively developed digital channels themselves. Currency exchange, international transfers, and multi-currency cards have become accessible through mobile applications — in just one click. This simplified the customer experience and significantly increased the volume of transactions.
Moreover, according to Akchabar sources, geopolitical events have also influenced the growth of foreign currency activity. After the start of the special military operation, Russia began conducting some of its foreign economic transactions through Kyrgyzstan. As a result, banks earn not only from the "som-dollar" pair but also from the "ruble-som" and "som-dollar" pairs.
The main portion of the profit is generated specifically from the conversion of "ruble to som." Thus, banks have started earning not only from traditional currency exchange but also from servicing foreign economic schemes.
Today, the largest share of income in foreign currency is recorded at Commercial Bank KSB — over 45%. This may be partly due to the fact that the bank was established with foreign capital participation, and its assets and operations are denominated in foreign currency.
Next is Capital Bank, where foreign currency operations account for almost 30% of income structure. Mbank has 26.49%, Eurasian Savings Bank — 26.47%, and closing the top five banks heavily reliant on foreign currency is Dos-Credobank with 24.2%.
At the same time, the smallest shares belong to Finca Bank and Keremet Bank, with 4.5% and 5.6% respectively.
Essentially, banks have absorbed some of the functions of large exchange offices. They earn from foreign currency operations comparable to traditional exchange bureaus, but with a far wider infrastructure and coverage.
However, the situation may change, and quite soon. Capital Bank was appointed as the operator of ruble transfers by a decision of the Cabinet of Ministers. This happened after the United States imposed sanctions on Keremet Bank, accusing it of transferring funds for goods under sanctions and supporting Russia. At that time, the decision was made that all ruble operations should be conducted by only one bank — under full government control with daily reporting. Capital Bank became that bank. Considering this, and the fact that most profitability comes from converting the "ruble-som" pair, it is quite likely that profits from foreign currency operations at other commercial banks will decrease.
