The National Agency for Perspective Projects (NAPP) has approved regulations allowing trading of foreign securities under the “Regulatory Sandbox” special legal regime in the capital market. The document took effect Thursday.
The rules provide for trading through special platforms of stock exchanges and the electronic platforms of investment intermediaries, as well as access to foreign venues through local brokers. Local instruments will be backed one-to-one by foreign assets held in the Central Depository’s account abroad.
Trading in all foreign shares will not start automatically. Each security needs NAPP approval, and intermediaries must meet the regime’s requirements and provide the necessary technical infrastructure.
Only qualified investors will be eligible. Individuals must meet at least one of six conditions, including holding at least $5,000 in cash or securities, having a recognized professional certificate such as CFA, or having at least two years of relevant work experience. Brokers will check eligibility and test individuals’ knowledge, although some investors may be exempted.
Buying foreign securities with borrowed funds is banned. A security must have an ISIN or another official identifier and be listed on a foreign venue whose listed securities had total capitalization of at least $1 trillion at the end of the last full calendar year. NAPP must decide on applications within 10 business days, and the registry of permitted instruments will be published on its website.
Transactions will be conducted in foreign currency. Platforms must allow withdrawals at least once a day, and brokers must execute withdrawal orders within three banking days. Income will be taxed under existing legislation, with no special exemptions.
NAPP will be able to suspend trading in cases of violations, market manipulation, a mismatch between instruments and their backing, serious technical failures, or a halt in trading on the foreign venue.
The rules implement a presidential decree of Dec 18, 2025, which expanded the sandbox regime, implemented in 2023, and made it open-ended. The decree’s policy goals include attracting $1 billion in additional investment into the stock market by 2030, including through issuing corporate bonds worth 5 trillion soums.
In April 2026, NAPP announced an expansion of the sandbox. It allowed the Central Depository and the Tashkent Republican Stock Exchange to carry out operations under the regime without separate registration as participants.
