The National Bank of the Republic of Tajikistan published a clarification in response to a Radio Ozodi article on the reported scarcity of US dollar cash, stating that it has not introduced any restrictions on supplying cash USD to credit financial institutions or on their sale of foreign currency to customers. Under established procedures, the central bank supplies cash USD based on institutions’ formal requests and reports that requests are being met fully and on time. Cash FX for retail sale is sourced by credit financial institutions from abroad and the domestic market, with daily distribution across branches based on location, demand and operational capacity. The central bank noted that cash allocated to the population in January to August 2025 was higher than in the same period of 2024, and that any temporary shortages can arise in exceptional cases such as a branch exhausting its allocated cash or delays in delivering cash to branches, which it says does not fully reflect market conditions. It also outlined factors influencing the somoni exchange rate, highlighting external drivers such as FX inflows, geopolitical and global economic events, policy shifts by major central banks and movements in the Russian ruble, alongside internal factors including domestic FX demand and banks’ provision of currency; current official-rate strengthening was linked to the ruble’s appreciation against the US dollar and seasonally lower FX demand. On documentation requests, the release reiterates that credit financial institutions must apply AML/CFT customer due diligence, including collecting information on the purpose and nature of the business relationship and identifying customers for one-off or linked cash FX exchange transactions between 350 and 1,750 calculation indicators (or the equivalent amount), and conducting due diligence regardless of amount where suspicion exists. In this context, customers may be asked to provide documents confirming commercial or entrepreneurial activity, while individuals needing foreign currency for education, medical treatment or travel are pointed to international payment cards (including Visa, UnionPay and Mastercard) funded in somoni with automatic conversion.
National Bank of the Republic of Tajikistan 2025-09-16
National Bank of the Republic of Tajikistan says cash US dollar supply is unrestricted and reiterates customer due diligence checks for cash FX exchange
The National Bank of the Republic of Tajikistan clarified it hasn't restricted cash USD supply to financial institutions or foreign currency sales to customers, ensuring requests are met on time. Cash allocated from January to August 2025 exceeded the same period in 2024, with any shortages due to exceptional circumstances. The bank emphasized AML/CFT due diligence for institutions, including documentation for cash FX transactions between 350 and 1,750 calculation indicators.