HorizonStrategiesEurope · Trans-Caspian · Beyond

Financial and professional services

Direct answer

Financial and professional services are regulated, trust-led and counterparty-specific; macro growth does not establish a lawful service route. What service can lawfully be delivered and to whom? Define the exact service, target client and delivery location, then determine whether the work requires local licensing, a permitted cross-border model or a regulated partner. The Central Bank of Armenia raised the policy rate by 25 basis points to 6.75% on 15 September 2026.

Editorial author
Horizon Strategies
Scope
Financial and professional services
Key facts and evidence
Fact or procedureRecorded evidenceAuthority and sourceChecked
Armenia · Armenia financial conditions: policy tightening sharpens diligence for credit and payment decisionsThe Central Bank of Armenia raised the policy rate by 25 basis points to 6.75% on 15 September 2026.Central Bank of Armenia — policy decisionOriginal source2026-10-10
Georgia · Georgia financial markets: market infrastructure and sector data support a targeted local-partner mapThe National Bank of Georgia reported that GMAP Market Development Forum 2026 was organised with the Georgian Financial Markets Treasuries Association and Nasdaq in Tbilisi.National Bank of Georgia — GMAP Forum 2026Original source2026-10-10
Kyrgyz Republic · Kyrgyz Republic finance and payments: sector activity requires a regulated workflow testThe National Bank reported 26 commercial banks and 308 branches as at 31 August 2026, alongside growth in the aggregate client deposit base; aggregate figures do not establish a product route or counterpart suitability.National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic — banking-system review, August 2026Original source2026-10-11
Turkmenistan · Turkmenistan finance and payments: country context requires counterparty-level payment and FX evidenceThe IMF country page records the 2026 Article IV process, while also indicating that public disclosure of underlying material is conditional; an Article IV process is macroeconomic context, not transaction evidence.IMF — Turkmenistan Article IV materialOriginal source2026-10-11
Uzbekistan · Uzbekistan digital payments: fintech strategy, regulation and provider records define a structured market-entry workflowThe Central Bank of Uzbekistan published the National Strategy for the Development of Financial Technologies for 2026–2030 on 24 September 2026; a strategy is a policy and coordination signal, not a licence, customer mandate or route-to-market approval.Central Bank of Uzbekistan — National FinTech Strategy 2026–2030, 24 September 2026Original source2026-10-20
Tajikistan · Tajikistan payments: infrastructure activity requires a regulated, counterparty-specific workflow gateThe National Bank of Tajikistan reports that more than 439.3 million payments, worth TJS 2,169.0 billion, were processed through the banking system in January–June 2026. Aggregate volume describes system use; it does not establish a particular payment flow, commercial fee, merchant-acquiring route, cross-border service or foreign-provider access.National Bank of Tajikistan — payment-system statistics, January–June 2026Original source2026-10-11
Azerbaijan · Azerbaijan digital payments: infrastructure and licensing evidence require a defined regulated workflowThe Central Bank of Azerbaijan reported that, by the end of 2025, the payments market included 17 electronic-money institutions, nine payment institutions and two payment operators, after further licences were issued during 2025. Those counts evidence a regulated market structure; they do not establish the eligibility, commercial terms or technical access of a particular new entrant.Central Bank of Azerbaijan — 2026 digital-payments expansion updateOriginal source2026-10-11
Türkiye · Türkiye payments: open-banking and instant-payment evidence requires a licensed workflow and integration gateThe Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye announced enhanced payment data-sharing services in March 2026, including expanded account and card-information functions plus scheduled and recurring payment-order services. The announcement describes standard Open Banking services and stakeholder integration; it does not establish that a specific provider may connect, access customer data, sell a product or contract with a participant.Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye — new Open Banking service features, March 2026Original source2026-10-11
Kazakhstan · Kazakhstan finance: payment-system and digital-finance signals require an exact regulated workflow, provider and settlement gateThe National Bank’s Q2 2026 electronic-money publication reports 63.5 million transactions totalling KZT 684.3 billion and describes issuer and operator counts. Aggregate activity does not establish a merchant account, provider eligibility, onboarding, payment acceptance, pricing, settlement, data access or a transaction for a defined business model.National Bank of Kazakhstan — electronic money, Q2 2026Original source2026-10-13
Georgia · Georgia finance: modern payment rails and the new factoring framework support a defined operating-model reviewThe National Bank of Georgia completed an RTGS and clearing-system modernisation in May 2026 using the ISO 20022 standard. The Bank describes the infrastructure as a foundation for future services including instant payments and further digital financial services. A system upgrade does not establish participation, connectivity, API access, transaction execution or commercial availability for a particular bank, provider or merchant.National Bank of Georgia: RTGS and clearing-system modernisation, 19 May 2026Original source2026-10-20
Türkiye · Türkiye finance: licensed payment infrastructure and MSME finance create defined routes for a well-scoped propositionThe Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye identifies Law No. 6493 and its secondary rules as the framework for payment services, payment institutions and electronic-money institutions. It also publishes current authorisation and service-scope registers. This provides a visible starting point for identifying a regulated local delivery route, although a register entry does not establish a partnership, integration, customer mandate or cross-border permissions for a particular offer.Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye: payment-services framework and current reporting materialOriginal source2026-10-20
Kazakhstan · Kazakhstan finance: interbank QR payments create a practical partner route for merchant and enterprise workflowsThe National Bank of Kazakhstan announced that its Interbank Mobile Payment System became available nationwide on 19 July 2026. The Bank stated that all banks offering retail mobile services had connected to the system, enabling instant interbank transfers by phone number and cross-bank QR payment for goods and services. The published launch describes national infrastructure, not a foreign provider’s access right, merchant contract, commercial partnership or transaction outcome.National Bank of Kazakhstan: national interbank QR and mobile-payment launch, 17 July 2026Original source2026-10-20
Armenia · Armenia finance: established payment infrastructure supports a defined bank or payment-provider workflowThe Central Bank of Armenia describes payment and settlement systems as the regulated infrastructure for transfers among individuals, businesses and government. Its public material identifies bank branches, payment cards, mobile and internet banking, e-money and QR technologies among the channels used by payment service providers. The description establishes a visible infrastructure and service landscape, not access, onboarding, sponsorship, an API, customer mandate or settlement outcome for a particular company.Central Bank of Armenia: payment and settlement system overviewOriginal source2026-10-20

Limits and what this does not prove: No tax, banking, payments, insurance or investment-service recommendation may be made from country context alone.

Decision question

What service can lawfully be delivered and to whom?

Route to evidence

Define the exact service, target client and delivery location, then determine whether the work requires local licensing, a permitted cross-border model or a regulated partner.

Country evidence

The Central Bank of Armenia raised the policy rate by 25 basis points to 6.75% on 15 September 2026.

The National Bank of Georgia reported that GMAP Market Development Forum 2026 was organised with the Georgian Financial Markets Treasuries Association and Nasdaq in Tbilisi.

The National Bank reported 26 commercial banks and 308 branches as at 31 August 2026, alongside growth in the aggregate client deposit base; aggregate figures do not establish a product route or counterpart suitability.

The IMF country page records the 2026 Article IV process, while also indicating that public disclosure of underlying material is conditional; an Article IV process is macroeconomic context, not transaction evidence.

The Central Bank of Uzbekistan published the National Strategy for the Development of Financial Technologies for 2026–2030 on 24 September 2026; a strategy is a policy and coordination signal, not a licence, customer mandate or route-to-market approval.

The National Bank of Tajikistan reports that more than 439.3 million payments, worth TJS 2,169.0 billion, were processed through the banking system in January–June 2026. Aggregate volume describes system use; it does not establish a particular payment flow, commercial fee, merchant-acquiring route, cross-border service or foreign-provider access.

The Central Bank of Azerbaijan reported that, by the end of 2025, the payments market included 17 electronic-money institutions, nine payment institutions and two payment operators, after further licences were issued during 2025. Those counts evidence a regulated market structure; they do not establish the eligibility, commercial terms or technical access of a particular new entrant.

The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye announced enhanced payment data-sharing services in March 2026, including expanded account and card-information functions plus scheduled and recurring payment-order services. The announcement describes standard Open Banking services and stakeholder integration; it does not establish that a specific provider may connect, access customer data, sell a product or contract with a participant.

The National Bank’s Q2 2026 electronic-money publication reports 63.5 million transactions totalling KZT 684.3 billion and describes issuer and operator counts. Aggregate activity does not establish a merchant account, provider eligibility, onboarding, payment acceptance, pricing, settlement, data access or a transaction for a defined business model.

The National Bank of Georgia completed an RTGS and clearing-system modernisation in May 2026 using the ISO 20022 standard. The Bank describes the infrastructure as a foundation for future services including instant payments and further digital financial services. A system upgrade does not establish participation, connectivity, API access, transaction execution or commercial availability for a particular bank, provider or merchant.

The Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye identifies Law No. 6493 and its secondary rules as the framework for payment services, payment institutions and electronic-money institutions. It also publishes current authorisation and service-scope registers. This provides a visible starting point for identifying a regulated local delivery route, although a register entry does not establish a partnership, integration, customer mandate or cross-border permissions for a particular offer.

The National Bank of Kazakhstan announced that its Interbank Mobile Payment System became available nationwide on 19 July 2026. The Bank stated that all banks offering retail mobile services had connected to the system, enabling instant interbank transfers by phone number and cross-bank QR payment for goods and services. The published launch describes national infrastructure, not a foreign provider’s access right, merchant contract, commercial partnership or transaction outcome.

The Central Bank of Armenia describes payment and settlement systems as the regulated infrastructure for transfers among individuals, businesses and government. Its public material identifies bank branches, payment cards, mobile and internet banking, e-money and QR technologies among the channels used by payment service providers. The description establishes a visible infrastructure and service landscape, not access, onboarding, sponsorship, an API, customer mandate or settlement outcome for a particular company.

Original sources