Kaspi.kz to spend $100 million to buyback its GDR

Kaspi.kz, a Kazakhstani fintech company, is launching a four-month buyback program. Kaspi has allocated $100 million to buy its global depository receipts (GDR) in the broad market, according to the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE). During three previous buyback programs, the company bought GDR for $180 million.

Kaspi.kz will buy GDR with the help of J.P. Morgan Securities Plc (JPMS), which will buy GDR in the market and then sell it to Kaspi. The two companies have already cooperated this way before when J.P. Morgan Securities placed Kaspi’s GDR on the LSE and bought out its shares. The current buyback program started on March 22 and will last until July 21, the company said in a statement.

Initially, Kaspi wanted to buy GDRs for $300 million in its three buyback programs. However, the company managed to buy just part of these securities. During its three buyback programs, the company purchased 1.1 million GDR for $45 million, $51 million and $84 million, respectively.

In addition, the shareholder’s general meeting has approved dividend payouts of $10.70 per one common or privileged share for 2022 starting from March 20.

Kaspi Group is the biggest shareholder of Kaspi Bank (94.56%). As of 2019, Kaspi.kz was the only stakeholder in the Kaspi Group. As of January 1, 2023, there were 19.5 million common shares and 500,000 privileged shares of the company in the market.

The biggest shareholders of Kaspi.kz are Baring Vostok (28.8%), Mikhail Lomtadze (24.55%) and Vyacheslav Kim (23.35%).