Kazakhstan’s government plans to reduce the shadow economy to 13.8% of GDP by 2028. To identify businesses operating outside the formal economy, the country is launching an AI-powered digital monitoring platform. The platform will combine data from government agencies to identify and help prevent risks associated with the shadow economy…
Kazakhstan currently has nine billionaires, according to Forbes. Below is an updated infographic highlighting Kazakhstan’s richest people and their key assets. The visual was compiled by Nurasyl Abdrazakuly, a Kazakh data scientist and frequent collaborator on our infographics. As in the previous infographic, each billionaire is shown alongside the logo…
The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) has resumed oil shipments after previously suspending loadings at its marine terminal near Novorossiysk, Russia, following attacks by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) on tankers, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy said. The Energy Ministry confirmed that the CPC resumed operations. “The Caspian…
The government of Kazakhstan has approved rules for strategic digital mining. Large mining companies will be able to purchase electricity at a price not exceeding the maximum rate charged by electricity producers by signing 10-year contracts. In return, they will donate a portion of their mined digital assets each month,…
Tengizchevroil (TCO), which operates Kazakhstan’s Tengiz oil field, plans to produce up to 40 million tons of oil by the end of 2026, according to Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy. In 2025, TCO produced 39 million tons of oil. In the first half of 2026, TCO produced 16.6 million tons of…
Hungarian banking group OTP Bank decided to strengthen its position in Europe instead of entering Kazakhstan, as previously planned. The bank has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares of Luminor Holding, the parent company of Luminor Bank, which operates in the Baltic states. The sellers are a…
Between January and May 2026, Kazakhstan exported 7,990 tons of chilled beef worth $56.7 million. Uzbekistan was by far the largest destination for Kazakhstan’s chilled beef exports. According to TradeReport, the country accounted for about 91% of Kazakhstan’s total chilled beef exports during the period, highlighting the sector’s heavy reliance…
Kazakhstan’s National Bank is evaluating several models for integrating confiscated cryptocurrency into the country’s financial system, including the possible creation of a National Strategic Cryptocurrency Reserve. In a statement, the central bank said it is working with other government agencies on arrangements for seizing, confiscating, storing and managing digital assets…
A factory producing humanoid and educational robots will be built in Almaty, becoming the first overseas manufacturing facility for Chinese robotics company UBTECH Robotics. Agreement signed in Shanghai According to the Almaty akimat (mayor’s office), the agreement was signed during a business forum in Shanghai attended by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart…
In 2025, China was the largest export market for nine of Kazakhstan’s regions, while Russia ranked first for seven. Italy, Switzerland and Uzbekistan were the top export destinations for the remaining regions. Read also: Between giants: Kazakhstan’s deepening ties to China and Russia. The map below shows the country to…
Most Kazakhstani banks have joined the Interbank Mobile Payment System (IMPS), which is designed to simplify purchases through a single QR code. The service will officially launch on July 19, with additional features to be introduced gradually. Speaking at the IMPS launch ceremony, National Bank Deputy Chairman Binur Zhalenov said…
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Justice says the country is not obligated to comply with an interim ruling issued by the U.N. Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) arbitration tribunal. As a result, shareholders in the Kashagan consortium could still be required to pay a 2.3 trillion tenge environmental fine, along with…
Kazakhstan’s commercial banks, including Halyk Bank and Freedom Bank, have begun offering mortgages under the Housing and Construction Savings (HCS) system, joining Otbasy Bank in providing loans with interest rates ranging from 5% to 10%. The new products could divert some demand from traditional market-rate mortgages, Ramazan Dossov, chief analyst…
Starting July 18, provisions will enter into force establishing the digital tenge as a digital form of the national currency and recognizing it as legal tender. The relevant provisions are set out in a law on issues concerning the regulation and development of the financial market, communications and bankruptcy. The…
Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), the national railway operator and a subsidiary of Samruk-Kazyna, plans to list its common shares and global depositary receipts (GDRs) on the Astana International Exchange (AIX), the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), according to a document the company published following…
East Kaz Alloys plans to conduct geological exploration for chromium ore at the Saburkhan-3 site in the Zharma district of Kazakhstan’s Abai region. “The site is located 160 kilometers southeast of the regional center, Semey, and 9 kilometers from the district center, the village of Kalbatau… The work will focus…
Women-owned small and medium enterprises across Europe and Central Asia continue to face a persistent financing gap, according to a new study by the World Bank. The study identifies 49 distinct barriers that prevent these entrepreneurs from accessing necessary debt and equity finance, ranging from deep-seated social norms to conflicting…
Kazakhstan’s tenge weakened after the National Bank announced plans to end the requirement for quasi-state-owned companies to sell a portion of their foreign currency earnings, although analysts said the measure’s actual impact on the exchange rate is likely to be limited. Over the past two trading sessions last week, the…
Chinese company Wuhan Xiangyu Dingsheng Construction Engineering plans to build a greenhouse complex for growing flowers and ornamental trees in Kazakhstan’s Turkestan region, according to the regional administration. The project also includes a dedicated retail center for flowers and ornamental plants. Regional officials said the project is expected to support…
This week, Kazakhstan’s National Bank will lift the requirement for quasi-state-owned companies to sell 50% of their foreign currency earnings on the domestic market, a measure introduced last year to support the tenge. National Bank Governor Timur Suleimenov said the requirement was adopted as a temporary anti-crisis measure when the…
According to hh.kz, a popular online platform for job seekers and employers in Kazakhstan, the median salary offered by employers to candidates on the website was $690.15 at the end of Q2 2026, representing a 4.7% year-on-year increase. The median salary represents the central value: half of the vacancies pay…
Banks’ May financial reports show that Otbasy Bank, unlike Kazakhstan’s universal lenders, has been largely unaffected by recent regulatory and tax changes. The specialized state-owned bank ranked first in loan growth, second in asset growth and third in deposit growth. Asset growth Total banking sector assets increased by 1.6 trillion…
Olzhas Baidildinov, a Kazakh expert in the oil and gas sector as well as energy and tariff policy, believes Kazakhstan needs to prepare for possible fuel shortages on the domestic market. Baidildinov argues that Kazakhstanis should be urged to conserve fuel, pointing to the worsening fuel supply situation in neighboring…
Kazakhstan could exempt individuals from paying taxes on income generated from digital asset transactions on regulated platforms. The measure is intended to bring the purchase and sale of digital assets into a regulated legal framework, the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development said. On July 7, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev…
