In early September, a state-owned store selling gold bars opened in Bishkek where gold can be bought without the presentation of a passport.
Kyrgyzaltyn OJSC has already reported record sales, topping 50 million KGS ($585 thousand), and providing the store with a net income of 3 million KGS ($35 thousand).
Changes in the law which previously allowed gold bars to only be bought in limited amounts through the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan, were instigated by President Sadyr Japarov of Kyrgyz, who explained:
“The National Bank does not sell bullion without a passport. Businessmen and rich people approached me – worried that if they started showing their documents – the whole of Kyrgyzstan would know about it, including robbers. Businessmen said they would have to stay in their houses and guard the gold,”
Having lifted restrictions, Sadyr Japarov called on citizens to buy domestic gold, recommending it as a reliable and profitable investment.
The Kyrgyzaltyn store sells gold bars weighing from 1 to 100 grams, each carrying an individual QR code confirming the gold’s origin. Prices for the sale and repurchase of gold are set daily, based on London Bullion Exchange quotations.
Kyrgyz economists believe that the growth of investment in gold indicates an increase in confidence in this asset.
“In Kyrgyzstan, this trend is influenced by several factors. Global instability and fluctuations in currency markets make people look for more reliable assets. Declining yields on bank deposits are also pushing for alternatives. In addition, inflation expectations encourage people to convert their savings into gold,” economist Nurgul Akimova told The Times of Central Asia.
Kyrgyzstan has about 380 gold deposits, the largest of which is Kumtor in Issyk-Kul Oblast. The republic’s mining sector produced over 20 tons of gold in 2023.
