Kazakhstanis are being lured into supposedly lucrative investment schemes using deepfakes of well-known figures and fake investment platforms. Over the past month and a half alone, 119 cases of fraud involving this scheme have been recorded in Kazakhstan, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office. Scammers place advertisements on TikTok, Instagram,…
Kazakhstan’s tax reform has had only a limited impact on strengthening the state’s revenue base, according to the National Bank of Kazakhstan’s August 2026 Monetary Policy Report. Budget deficit widens In the first half of 2026, the overall state budget deficit rose to 3.2% of gross domestic product (GDP), exceeding…
A proposal in Kazakhstan would allow digital asset owners to resolve tax liabilities arising from past transactions by disclosing their assets and transferring them in full from foreign or other unregulated platforms to licensed Kazakhstani digital asset service providers. The proposal is included in amendments to the Tax Code. Tax…
The National Bank is working to expand QR payment access for Kazakhstanis in China, India, the UAE and several other countries by mid-2027. According to National Bank Deputy Chairman Binur Zhalenov, who took part in the Central Asia Fintech Summit 2026, the regulator is continuing work to enable cross-border payments…
Timur Suleimenov, governor of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, believes the country needs to move away from a rigid, bank-centric financial system in which banks account for 80% or more of the entire financial sector. Read also: High deposit inflows meet rising credit stress in Kazakh banking. He said brokers,…
Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank Kazakhstan (ADCB) Chairman Farooq Al Marzooqi announced during a meeting with Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov that the bank intends to triple financing for Kazakhstani projects over the next 18 months. The current figure stands at 2.5 trillion tenge (approximately $5.5 billion). The parties discussed expanding…
National Bank of Kazakhstan Governor Timur Suleimenov expressed hope that inflation will decline significantly by the end of September or October, allowing the National Bank to cut its base rate more aggressively than previously anticipated. The recently reduced base rate stands at 16.25%. «As long as inflation remains high and…
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Finance is taking orders for two yuan-denominated bond issues, according to the Finmentor Telegram channel. Kazakhstan had already raised 3.4 billion yuan through its debut sovereign panda bond issue in China earlier this year. According to economist Arman Batayev, the Astana International Exchange (AIX) is collecting orders…
The National Bank of Kazakhstan reduced the base rate from 16.75% to 16.25%. The decision was made at a Monetary Policy Committee meeting on Sept. 4. This marks the third consecutive reduction in the base rate, following cuts in June and July from 18% to 17% and from 17% to…
Lion Finance Group, the parent company of Bank of Georgia, hasn’t approached Kazakhstan’s regulator about acquiring a local bank, Madina Abylkassymova, chair of the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market, told Kursiv.media. «The agency has not received any application from the company, and at present we have…
Lion Finance Group Plc, a Georgian banking group that controls Bank of Georgia, is planning to expand into the Central Asian market. According to CEO Archil Gachechiladze, the group plans to acquire large banks in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, as well as in the Baltics and the Balkans. Interestingly, Lion Finance…
Beijing-based China Construction Bank (CCB) is considering establishing a subsidiary in Kazakhstan. The potential expansion was a key topic of discussion between CCB President Zhang Jinliang and officials from Kazakhstan’s Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM) and the National Bank. During the meeting, the two sides…
Freedom Insurance has grown nearly tenfold in five years, offset billions in auto insurance losses through digitalization and is now preparing to launch an insurance marketplace. In an interview with Kursiv.media, Freedom Insurance CEO Azamat Kerimbayev explained why auto insurance rates are set to rise by more than 40% for…
Kazakhstan’s commercial banking sector experienced a massive surge in client funding in June, yet escalating credit risks and the accounting impact of state aid repayments have dampened overall industry profitability. While banks absorbed 1.8 trillion tenge in corporate and retail deposits during June, the sector’s cumulative first-half net profit declined…
Freedom Yatırım Menkul Değerler A.Ş., part of Freedom Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: FRHC), which operates more than 200 offices across over 20 countries in North America, Europe and Asia, has received its operating license from the Capital Markets Board of Türkiye (CMB), becoming the first foreign brokerage firm with broad authorization…
The earlier a young family obtains a home of its own, the more likely it is to have more children, according to Lyazzat Ibragimova, CEO of Otbasy Bank, the sole bank implementing housing construction savings system in Kazakhstan. Ibragimova shared the findings of an international study at a recent government briefing. She said…
In highly polarized media landscapes, the specific television news channels households watch can fundamentally shape their economic expectations, according to a study published by the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR). Investigating Turkey’s deeply divided media environment during a period of high inflation, the research reveals that political segmentation erodes…
Freedom Holding Corp. reported an increase in revenue and its customer base for the first quarter of fiscal 2027, ended June 30, 2026. The holding’s total revenue reached $732.9 million, compared with $524 million in the same period a year earlier. The growth was driven by higher interest and commission…
The overpayment on a 3 million tenge (about $6,500) loan from Zaman Bank for five years is 3.62 million tenge, according to a Threads user named nur.kanatuly.kz. «Islamic Bank Zaman-Bank JSC. Islamic finance. Just for fun, I calculated it in their mobile app: Loan amount: 3 million tenge. Interest on…
Nearly a year after receiving its banking license, KMF Bank reported a decline in profit on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE). In the first half of 2026, the financial institution posted net profit of 4.3 billion tenge (approximately $9 million), down from 4.7 billion tenge a year earlier. According to…
Kazakhstan’s first licensed cryptocurrency exchange, Pax Finance, has announced its integration with the mobile app of Alatau City Bank, which is owned by the country’s richest businessman, Vyacheslav Kim. The integration allows the bank’s clients to fund their Pax Finance accounts directly from their bank cards through the banking app.…
Kazakhstan’s total public and publicly guaranteed debt reached 40.9 trillion tenge (approximately $86 billion) as of July 1, 2026. During the second quarter, the total increased by 1.84 trillion tenge, or 4.7%. Public and publicly guaranteed debt stood at 39.1 trillion tenge as of April 1, according to the Ministry…
State-guaranteed deposits at Kazakhstani banks undergoing resolution with support from shareholders and, where applicable, the government will remain fully protected, according to Dauren Salimbayev, deputy chairman of the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM). Salimbayev outlined the country’s proposed framework for resolving insolvent banks during a…
China and Kazakhstan are expanding cooperation in the financial sector. Representatives of Kazakhstan’s National Bank, Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market (ARDFM) and National Payment Corporation of Kazakhstan held a series of meetings with representatives of the People’s Bank of China, the National Financial Regulatory Administration, the…
