Kazakhstan’s government has established legislation governing exchanges between authorized crypto trading platforms and traditional financial institutions. The new rules would allow bitcoin exchanges to open bank accounts in the country if they are registered.
A working group comprised of representatives from the Ministry of Digital Development, the central bank, financial regulators, and members of the financial and digital asset sectors adopted regulations allowing crypto exchanges registered at the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) to be serviced by second-tier banks in Kazakhstan, according to the ministry.
The proposal is part of a larger project to establish a regulatory framework that would help Kazakhstan realize its potential as a regional crypto hub. According to a press release, it will be implemented as a pilot throughout 2022, with crypto trading platforms regulated by the AIFC Financial Services Authority (AFSA) taking part.
When China tightened down on crypto mining in May of last year, Kazakhstan became a magnet for miners. However, according to Digital Development Minister Bagdat Musin, the crypto business comprises crypto exchanges, but also digital wallets, and other blockchain platforms in addition to mining. According to the high-ranking government official:
“It is like other industries, which can and should work for the benefit of our economy. We must make money on crypto exchange — this is the next level of development of financial technologies.”
Musin requested that Kazakhstan build a full-fledged ecosystem so that digital assets extracted with the country’s electricity are exchanged on local platforms and the resulting revenue stays in Kazakhstan.