Uzbekistan's Centrum Holding planning IPO early next year - CEO

TASHKENT. Aug 25 (Interfax) - Uzbekistan's Centrum Holding logistics group is planning an IPO at the beginning of 2027, its founder and CEO, Abdulaziz Abdurakhmanov, said in an interview with the Uzbekistan-24 TV channel.

Asked about the company's valuation, Abdurakhmanov said it was currently worth $2 billion, with Centrum Holding intending to conduct an initial public offering in the first quarter of next year.

He said the holding founded Centrum Air in 2023. The fleet currently consists of nearly 30 aircraft, first half of 2026 of them cargo and first half passenger aircraft. "Centrum Holding plans to increase its fleet to 40 aircraft by the end of 2026, to 65 next year and 100 by the end of 2029," Abdurakhmanov said, adding that the company had already signed contracts for more than 50 aircraft.

He also said the company planned to increase exports, which should reach $1 billion this year, given its ground and air logistics potential.

Earlier reports said the company was looking at the London Stock Exchange as a potential IPO venue.

According to Uzbek media, the U.S. investment company Oppenheimer and Citibank signed an agreement in February to support Centrum Holding's IPO. At that time, representatives of Oppenheimer said that they expected to conduct the offering with a company valuation of around $2 billion and raise approximately $600 million through the sale of around 30% of shares. In addition to preparing for an IPO, the holding is also considering entering the international debt market with a debut issue of Eurobonds.

Centrum Holding was founded in 2019 as a cargo air carrier operator. Currently, the group combines cargo and passenger airlines, tourism business, logistics centers, a railway fleet, terminals and port infrastructure. Revenue reached $1 billion in 2025, and the number of employees was approximately 5,000 people. According to the company, 63% of the group's revenue comes from the logistics business (air and ground cargo transportation), and another 30% from passenger air transportation. The remaining 7% is generated by other business lines.

The company controls over 40% of the air cargo transportation market in Uzbekistan and around 30% of passenger air transportation. Within the next year, Centrum expects to increase its share in the passenger segment of the market to 50%.

Centrum Holding manages the largest dry port in Uzbekistan, with an area of 46 hectares, and is building a new logistics complex with an area of 83 ha next to Tashkent's future international airport. The company is already the largest operator of container railway platforms in Uzbekistan and intends to increase its fleet of tank cars to 3,000 units, becoming the largest player in this segment as well.