DUSHANBE, February 1, Asia-Plus  -- The possibility of increasing minimum capital requirements for Tajik banks is still under consideration, Touraqul Haqnazarov, the head of bank supervision and licensing department of the National bank of Tajikistan (NBT), told Asia-Plus on Friday.   

According to him, Tajik central bank’s intention to increase its minimum capital requirements for local banks from $5 million to $15 million, which had been announced earlier, has not yet been endorsed.  “Experts are sill looking into this issue,” Haqnazarov said, adding that it could be ruled out that new NBT’s minimum capital requirements would be much lower than the announced $15 million.  

“However, NBT’s minimum capital requirements for local banks still remain the same - $5 million,” the NBT official said.   

At present nine banks operate in Tajikistan: Agroinvestbonk, Orienbonk, SohibkorBonk, Bank Eskhata, Amonatbonk (Tajik savings bank), Tojiksodirotbonk (TSB), Tajikistan Development Bank (TDB), TajPromBank and The First MicroFinance Bank.  Additionally, branches of Iran’s Tejarat Bank and Kazakhstan’s Kazkomertzbank also function in the country.