Kyrgyzstan’s Eldik Bank Secures CNY 1 Billion Loan from China Development Bank

Kyrgyzstan’s state-owned Eldik Bank has signed a loan agreement worth 1 billion Chinese yuan (CNY), or about $147 million, with China Development Bank to finance priority projects and deepen economic cooperation between Bishkek and Beijing. The agreement was signed on July 2 by Eldik Bank Chairman Ulanbek Nogaev and China Development Bank President Tan Jiong. According to Eldik Bank, the funds will be used to finance small and medium-sized enterprises in infrastructure, green energy, industry, agriculture, and other priority sectors. The bank said the facility would give entrepreneurs in Kyrgyzstan access to long-term capital to modernize production and carry out investment projects that create jobs. The two sides also plan to sign an additional agreement allocating CNY 700 million to Eldik Bank’s subsidiaries, Eldik Leasing and Sky Mobile, which will oversee projects under the financing framework. Eldik Bank said the agreement reflected trust between the two financial institutions and a shared interest in expanding financial and investment ties. “Our partnership with China Development Bank has been developing successfully for more than 20 years and has made a significant contribution to supporting Kyrgyzstan’s economy,” Nogaev said. “This new agreement creates additional opportunities for financing priority projects and will further strengthen the economic ties between Kyrgyzstan and China.” The signing took place during the 22nd meeting of the council of the Interbank Consortium of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan, where Eldik Bank currently holds the rotating chairmanship. Delegations from member banks in Belarus, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan attended the meeting. Participants discussed expanding interbank cooperation, joint investment projects, and sustainable finance initiatives within the SCO framework. China remains one of Kyrgyzstan’s largest external creditors. In late June, Kyrgyzstan’s parliament approved a separate preferential loan agreement with the Export-Import Bank of China to finance part of the country’s share in the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, one of Central Asia’s largest transport infrastructure projects. As of January 31, 2026, Kyrgyzstan’s debt to China’s Export-Import Bank stood at approximately $1.5 billion.