KHUJAND, July 8, 2008, Asia-Plus  -- The number of residents of the northern Sughd province keeping their money in banks is increasing, according to the branch of the National bank o Tajikistan (NBT) in Khujand.

“As of July 1, 2009, an amount equivalent to more than 170.277 million somoni has been deposited by local residents in savings accounts in Sughd banks,” said the source in NBT’s branch in Khujand, “An amount equivalent to more than 140.81 million somoni is kept in foreign currencies.”

People’s deposits have risen more than 32 percent in the year to July 1, 2009, and experts attribute this rise to increase in the exchange rates of the foreign currencies.

Some 20 banks and microlending organizations currently operate in northern Tajikistan, the source said.