Government gives green light to Kim’s acquisition of Jusan Bank in Kazakhstan

The Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM) has approved Vyacheslav Kim’s bid to acquire Jusan Bank, according to Interfax Kazakhstan, citing the press service of Kaspi.kz. Kim is a well-known businessman, co-owning Kaspi.kz, a fintech giant in Kazakhstan.

He submitted his application in February to purchase 97.5% of Jusan Bank shares. The regulator was initially expected to review the bid by April but extended the review period by two months, citing the need to «establish factual circumstances» important for evaluating the application.

Kim emphasized at the time that this potential acquisition was unrelated to Kaspi.kz, where he holds a 21.32% ownership stake. According to Forbes, Kim currently ranks as the richest person in Kazakhstan, with a fortune of $7.1 billion, a $1.3 billion increase year-on-year.

At present, 100% of Jusan Bank shares are owned by businessman Galimzhan Yessenov. Yessenov controls 79.89% of the shares through First Heartland Securities and holds the remaining 20.11% directly. He assumed full control of the bank in 2023, after Kazakh prosecutors initiated legal action to return Jusan Bank shares to Kazakh jurisdiction. Before that, Yessenov owned less than 20% of the bank’s shares, while the American endowment fund New Generation Foundation exercised control over the entity.