The government of Kazakhstan has abandoned its earlier plan to merge the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) and the Astana International Exchange (AIX) under the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC). According to Timur Suleimenov, chair of the National Bank, the decision is part of a broader reform of the AIFC that the authorities are preparing to implement.
Suleimenov noted that changing the tax regime within the AIFC is not on the table, as numerous Kazakhstani and foreign companies have joined the center in recent years specifically to benefit from tax incentives. This concern even led Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin to...