Euro Holds Above 100 Soms as Ruble Falls; Kazakh Tenge Strengthens

On July 20, 2026, the Euro held its ground above the 100 som mark in Kyrgyzstan, despite a slight decrease of 0.21 percent according to the National Bank of Kyrgyzstan's official rate. However, the Russian ruble continued its downward trend, depreciating by 0.41 percent against the som, reaching its July minimum. This decline impacts migrant remittances, with 30,000 rubles now converting to 33,579 soms, a decrease of 138 soms from the previous day and 1,671 soms over the month.

In contrast, the Kazakh tenge demonstrated a strengthening performance, rising by 0.54 percent to reach a monthly high. The US dollar, as is traditional, maintained its stability, with the official rate unchanged. Exchange bureaus in Bishkek reported average buying rates of 87.38 soms for the dollar and selling rates of 87.8 soms. For the Euro, average rates were 99.71 soms for buying and 100.69 soms for selling. The Russian ruble saw average buying rates of 1.039 soms and selling rates of 1.141 soms.

The National Bank of Kyrgyzstan has been active in managing the currency market. On July 14, 2026, the bank conducted its ninth intervention of the year, selling $186.4 million. Since the beginning of 2026, the bank has sold a total of $1.4726 billion. In 2025, eight interventions were carried out, resulting in the sale of $853 million, with no purchase operations conducted. In 2024, the National Bank engaged in 26 currency market operations, comprising 13 purchases totaling $369.35 million and 13 sales amounting to $675.65 million. The previous year, 2023, saw the sale of $655.72 million on the currency market.