In 1995, the bank stood forth as the main founder when establishing the Association of Banks of Uzbekistan. In 1996, the number of employees reached 2,000 positions. The client base, which previously represented export-oriented industries, began to expand with small and private enterprises. In 1997, the number of employees increased up to 3,4 thous. positions. In 1998, the bank joined the Association of Asian Banks (ABA). The National Bank was the first bank in Uzbekistan and Central Asia to switch to a new chart of accounts meeting international accounting standards. An increase in the Bank's own capital up to US$571 million provided its position among the 500 largest banks in the world and additional base for banking operations. The correspondent banking network increased to 432 banks, including 30 banks in Uzbekistan and 402 - foreign banks in 66 countries all over the world. The end of the year was marked by a change in management. R.S. Azimov was appointed the Minister of Finances. According to the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Zaynutdin Mirkhodjayev was appointed his successor. Previously, he worked as Deputy Minister of Foreign Economic Relations of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The year 1999 became a foundation for expanding cooperation between the Association of Banks of Asia and ADFIAP. The parties agreed on joint arrangement of large forums and conferences in Uzbekistan to disclose investment potential of the country's economy to the Asian financial community, as well as establish partnership within specific projects and training programs. In terms of capital adequacy the Bank is among the 50 largest banks in the world. In 2000, being a member of the Association of Banks of Asia (ABA) and the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP), the NBU held a meeting of the board of directors of ADFIAP. In the same year, the Bank founded its professional football club "NBU-Asia." In 2001, about 120 delegations from foreign financial institutions visited the Bank. The correspondent network has expanded to 500 banks, including 472 foreign ones in 66 countries and 28 banks in Uzbekistan. The Bank's website was launched. The National Bank was the first financial institution in the CIS region to build a geographically distributed cluster data center on the IBM eServer p690 UNIX platform using SAN technology. 'Science and technology', Moscow - Tashkent, 2004. In 2003, the Bank adopted corporate bond underwriting. The Bank’s debut was evaluated by the Uzbek Stock Exchange and awarded the title of 'Best Underwriting Company'.