The future megacity of Alatau, which is being built between Almaty and Konayev, aims to become the main entertainment center in Central Asia. According to the Almaty region administration, one of the city’s four districts — the Green District — will be dedicated entirely to tourism. Under the design project,…
Otbasy Bank, a state-owned bank specializing in mortgages, may become a «special product lender,» radically changing its image and geographic presence. It is set to expand its product portfolio by adding Islamic finance and leasing, according to Timur Onzhanov, deputy CEO of Baiterek Holding. In an interview with Bloomberg, the…
In 2025, banks and exchange offices sold 40,799 gold bullion bars weighing a total of 1.1 tons to the public. Since the program was launched in 2017, a total of 263,479 bars weighing nine tons have been sold, the National Bank of Kazakhstan reported. The most popular size was the…
Documents related to the construction of Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power plant are in the final stages of approval, including financing arrangements. Alexey Borodavkin, Russia’s ambassador to Kazakhstan, announced the update in an interview with Russia 24. The agreement outlines the project’s organizational, legal and technical framework. A second set of…
Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev criticized government agencies for irrational spending on digitalization during an expanded government meeting Feb. 10. The head of state called for the creation of a unified digital platform without requesting «huge sums of money» from the state budget. According to Tokayev, the lack of unified oversight…
Air Astana shareholders have approved a deal with Airbus to purchase 25 aircraft. Renewing its fleet will cost the airline at least 550 billion tenge ($1 billion). The decision, made at a special shareholders meeting, was announced on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange. Air Astana is expected to place a firm…
With the new Tax Code that took effect in 2026 and related policy changes, Kazakhstan is significantly tightening taxation requirements for mining companies, according to a MINEX Kazakhstan forecast for 2026. The report highlights rising taxes on uranium and gold mining as market prices for the metals increase. Read also:…
China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC), the largest construction company in China, will participate in the construction of Alatau City, an ambitious new project in the Almaty region. According to regional authorities, the company’s engagement is the result of an agreement signed in September in Beijing between Kazakhstan’s National Investment…
Freedom Holding Corp. (FRHC) aims to create a fully-fledged digital infrastructure in Kazakhstan that contributes to the country’s development, according to the company’s CEO Timur Turlov. He made this statement at the FRHC Strategic Summit held from Jan. 25 to Jan. 29 in Limassol, Cyprus. Global scale The Freedom Holding…
In late January, authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) notified mining companies operating in the country that they must allocate 5% of their shares to local employees, according to Bloomberg. The requirement applies to Eurasian Resources Group (ERG), a Kazakh mining holding company that produces copper and…
Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said effective engagement with investors requires cooperation among government agencies through a single coordination and decision-making center. New appointments to oversee investment work Presidential aide Murat Nurtleu has been appointed coordinator for work with foreign investors, while presidential adviser Asset Irgaliyev will oversee engagement with international…
Alatau, Kazakhstan’s new flagship megaproject, is set to become the region’s first fully digital city, featuring blockchain integration and a cryptocurrency-based economy, according to the Almaty regional administration, where the city is located. International partnerships and investment During a recent visit to China, a Kazakh delegation concluded agreements worth billions…
Timur Turlov’s Freedom Holding Corp. (FRHC) released its financial results for the third quarter of fiscal year 2026 (ended Dec. 31, 2025), revealing $1.688 billion in revenue and $145 million in net profit for the first nine months of the fiscal year. The company also reported strong growth in key…
Kazakhstan is willing to supply 20 of the 60 minerals considered critical to the U.S., Kazakh Foreign Minister Yermek Kosherbayev said during the first ministerial conference on critical minerals in Washington, according to the Kazinform news agency. Delegations from more than 50 countries attended the conference last week. During the…
The international trading platform ITS has completed the regular rebalancing of its flagship ITS World Index, increasing the number of Kazakhstani issuers in the index from two to five. Who joined the top list? The index basket, which tracks 50 of the world’s largest corporations, added three new representatives from…
Kazakhstan’s banking sector will remember the year 2025 for a sharp decline in profit growth amid additional taxation and higher minimum reserve requirements. Growth in loan and deposit portfolios also slowed, though less dramatically than financial results. Total sector assets rose from 61.6 trillion to 70.8 trillion tenge in 2025…
South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb mistakenly transferred 620,000 bitcoins to users — coins worth more than $42 billion at current prices. The incident was caused by human error rather than a cyberattack. An error costing billions According to the South Korean newspaper Chosun, the mistake occurred during the distribution of…
Timur Turlov’s Freedom Bank has ranked among the top three banks in Kazakhstan for the highest interest rates on certificates of deposit, alongside Home Credit and Eurasian Bank, according to Ranking.kz. Freedom Bank, part of the Freedom Finance ecosystem supervised by well-known financier Timur Turlov, became the first bank in…
Oil and gas giant Shell will suspend investments in Kazakhstan during ongoing legal proceedings with the government, according to CEO Wael Sawan. He said multiple lawsuits filed by the republic, totaling billions of dollars, are reducing the company’s willingness to continue investing in the country. Kazakhstan is currently involved in…
On Feb. 4, as part of Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s state visit to Pakistan, he and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif attended the Kazakhstan-Pakistan Business Forum, according to the Akorda press service. Speaking at the forum, Tokayev thanked the Pakistani prime minister for initiating the event, calling his first state visit…
Timur Turlov, founder and CEO of Freedom Holding Corp., plans to acquire another bank and a local marketplace in Kazakhstan. The company is also looking to purchase a second-tier bank in Turkey. To finance these initiatives, the holding is considering issuing up to $500 million in bonds, Turlov said. In…
China’s Hong Kong–based Sino-Science Oil and Gas Co. Ltd., also known as Geo-Jade Petroleum, plans to produce up to 1 trillion cubic meters of natural gas from the Sozak field in southern Kazakhstan, according to Sultangali Kinzhakulov, CEO of Kazakh Invest. Kinzhakulov said the project involves reinvesting profits earned by…
Federal prosecutors in Chicago have indicted two Kazakh citizens in connection with a large-scale health care fraud scheme involving private insurance and Medicare. Investigators estimate that losses to public and private insurers exceeded $1 billion. Case against Anuar Abdrakhmanov One indictment centers on Anuar Abdrakhmanov, a Kazakh citizen accused of…
Kazakhstan’s Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market and the National Bank have approved new rules allowing banks with universal licenses, as well as Islamic banks, to operate with digital financial assets. Three categories of digital assets Under the regulations, banks may conduct transactions involving three types of…
