Turkmenistan Banks Raise Loan Share to 81.4%

Total assets were 167.4 billion manats, or $47.8 billion, broadly unchanged from Jan. 1 and up 5.1% year on year. That pushed the loan-to-asset ratio up from 79.4% at the start of the year and 80% a year earlier, while correspondent and reserve balances with the central bank fell to 16.1 billion manats from 19.4 billion at the beginning of the year.

For investors and policymakers, the key issue is not just loan growth but credit composition. Turkmenistan’s financial system has long been shaped by directed lending to support import substitution, exports and other priority sectors, a model the World Bank says remains a defining feature of the market.

The IMF has argued that such lending weakens monetary-policy transmission and distorts credit allocation, and the latest figures suggest that dynamic is still in place. At the same time, private-sector borrowing is growing faster than the overall loan book: credit to private businesses reached 20.2 billion manats by February 2026, up 36.4% year on year, though it remains a small share of total lending.

That mix leaves the near-term story constructive but uneven. A larger loan share can help fund economic activity and diversification if financing reaches productive companies outside the hydrocarbon sector, but it also underscores how dependent Turkmenistan remains on state-led credit decisions rather than broad-based balance-sheet growth.

The next test is whether lending keeps shifting toward private investment and non-hydrocarbon activity, or whether the banking system remains mainly a transmission channel for policy priorities.