IT Park Uzbekistan and the Central Bank of Uzbekistan, with the support of the Ministry of Digital Technologies and Boston Consulting, held the CBU Coding Challenge 2025 competition in Tashkent. The competition supported talented young people in the field of data science and quantitative analysis, and tested participants' skills in applying statistical and machine learning models to identify loan defaults.

 

The CBU Coding Challenge was an initiative that brought together promising ideas, experts and innovative solutions. The aim is to support talent in the field of data engineering, to further popularise financial services through innovative approaches, and to create solutions that are fast and convenient.

 

 

A total of 629 applications were received for the competition. Following a selection process, 177 participants were chosen, from which 42 teams were formed. They were tasked with creating a model to assess the probability of loan default within 48 hours.

 

 

Day one: familiarisation with the task and technical requirements

 

The participants were presented with the main task, the dataset, and the technical requirements. Experts from IT Park Uzbekistan and BCG conducted training and provided consultations. The teams formulated their initial approaches, further strengthening their knowledge and skills.

 

 

Day Two: Practical Testing of Models

 

On the second day of the competition, participants continued to work on their models, identifying risk segments, assessing default probability, and testing algorithms in conditions close to real-world practice. This stage required not only technical skills but also economic reasoning.

 

 

Competition winners:

 

1st place — Renaissance Technologies — 150 million soums

2nd place — MAAB Innovation — 100 million soums

3rd place — DataVision — 50 million soums

 

 

The greatest opportunity for participants is the chance to work at the Central Bank and, in the future, to start a career in the financial system.

 

The main objective of the project

 

The CBU Coding Challenge 2025 serves to develop the potential of young people in the following areas:

 

• Developing new talent in data science;

• Introducing innovative solutions for credit risk management;

• Strengthening collaboration between government, business, and higher education institutions;

• Providing participants with practical experience.

 

The 177 young specialists participating in the competition can play an active role in shaping banking technologies, fintech solutions, and financial policy in the future.

 

The competition was organised in close cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Technologies of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the IT Park Uzbekistan.