Taxes and Incentives

• • Alif Bank is a FinTech company as well as one of the largest funding round investors in Central Asia, with 90% market share in Tajikistan and 33% in Uzbekistan.

  • Zhongguancun Science Park’s Angel Investor projects are ranked #1 in China.

  • Microsoft Ventures has funded $235 million USD to provide guidance and funding to cloud-computing firms in China.

  • “Growth in Georgia” is a $65 million USD grant allocated by USAID to support employment and accountable governance in Georgia. The grant has the potential to increase to$330 million over the next five years.

  • Companies located in the Astana Hub, the High Tech Park, and free economic zones are eligible for tax breaks.

  • STEP awarded $30,000 to Social Startups in Pakistan.

  • Pakistan’s largest fundraising by an early-stage tech startup was achieved by Bazaar Technologies Pvt, which raised $30 million.

  • Zameen is in the top 5 property portals in the world raising over $31.5 million in funding.

    Investor Landscape

    • ADB has invested over $14.97 billion in CAREC development projects since 2001;

    • Overall, $40 billion worth of investments have been made collectively by ADB, development partners, and the CAREC governments since 2001;

    • Between 2005 and 2030 the region must invest up to $9.7 trillion in the energy sector;

    • The CAREC 2030 Plan proposes establishing an agency for multilateral trade credit and investment guarantees;

    • Until 2030, CAREC members have set out to stimulate private sector investments and cross-border investment within member countries;

    Notable events

    • Startup Weekends in Zavkhan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Georgia

    • ITB China Startup Award

    • Central Asia’s Energy Investment Forum 2021