AKIPRESS.COM - A bank robbery in Uzbekistan's western Khorezm region appears to have exposed the parlous state of some financial institutions in the country, reports The Daily Star.

While the sum of 16,131,000 Uzbek soum might seem a lot, especially when the criminal gang had to load the cash into their van in 45 sacks, their haul turned out to be worth only $2,600 on current black market rates.

According to local officials, the gang broke a window to gain access to the branch of the Mikrokredit Bank in Bogot and smashed safes to get hold of their bulky yet small fortune.

The suspects, who reportedly include a former security guard at the bank, were subsequently arrested, and now face up to 16 years in prison.

The major problem for anybody carrying cash in Uzbekistan is that the largest denomination note is the 5,000 soum bill, worth $1.73 on official currency markets, but trading for as little as 80 cents on the black market.

Low value coins and banknotes are virtually worthless, and the bank raid would have comprised of many thousands of notes.