Uzbekistan’s Competition Watchdog Probes Forced Bundle Sales in Pharmacy Supply Chain

Uzbekistan’s Competition Committee has opened an inquiry into allegations that some pharmaceutical importers and wholesale distributors are forcing pharmacies to purchase unwanted medicines as a condition of receiving high-demand drugs — a practice the regulator says may constitute an abuse of dominant bargaining power under the country’s competition law.

Complaints circulating on social media describe suppliers attaching mandatory orders for slow-moving or unsolicited preparations to deliveries of medicines that pharmacies actually need. The Competition Committee confirmed it is examining the claims, warning that such conditions can harm the economic interests of small businesses, restrict their operations and distort competition in the market.

A concentrated import market

The inquiry comes against the backdrop of a notably concentrated supply chain. In the first nine months of 2026, pharmaceutical imports into Uzbekistan were handled by 305 companies — yet just five of those importers accounted for 47.2 percent of all imports by value. That degree of concentration gives a small number of suppliers significant leverage over the roughly 14,598 pharmacies operating across the country as of 1 October 2026. Of those outlets, 449 are wholesale pharmacies and 14,149 are retail; within the retail segment, 7,940 are standalone pharmacies and 6,209 are branches.

What the law says — and what it could cost

Under Uzbekistan’s Law on Competition, requiring a counterparty to purchase or sell additional goods as a condition of a contract can, in certain circumstances, be classified as an abuse of superior bargaining power. If investigators confirm that pharmacies were made to buy unordered preparations as a precondition for accessing sought-after medicines, the companies responsible could face financial sanctions equivalent to up to five percent of their revenue from goods sold during the period of the violation — capped at the preceding three years. The Competition Committee stated that if a breach of competition legislation is established, the measures prescribed by law will be applied to the relevant enterprises.

The probe adds to growing regulatory scrutiny of Uzbekistan’s pharmaceutical distribution sector, where a small cluster of importers controls nearly half the market and retail pharmacies — many of them small independent businesses — have limited ability to refuse supplier terms without losing access to essential stock.