Kazakhstan has taken a significant step towards regulating the cryptocurrency market. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has signed a new package of laws that introduces licensed crypto exchanges and gives the central bank the power to decide which cryptocurrencies can be officially traded in the country.
The aim is to increase market control, protect investors, and create a solid framework for the development of digital assets.
The new legislation amends banking and financial laws and sets rules for the issuance and circulation of digital assets. It also introduces a requirement for crypto exchanges operating in Kazakhstan to obtain a license. This is the first time the state has created a comprehensive regulatory framework for the entire digital asset sector.
A new class of assets for the digital economy
The law divides them into three groups: stablecoins, assets backed by financial instruments or property, and financial instruments issued in electronic digital form.
The Financial Market Regulation and Development Agency is responsible for setting specific rules for the issuance, circulation, and repurchase of these assets. Stablecoins, which have their own regime, are an exception.
Entities that will issue these digital assets through digital platforms will have to obtain a license from the central bank. At the same time, digital financial assets are subject to similar requirements as traditional financial instruments, i.e., rules in the area of risk management, information transparency, and investor protection. The state is thus signaling that it treats the new class of assets as a full-fledged part of the financial market.
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Bitcoin under state supervision
The law also explicitly refers to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, which it refers to as “unsecured digital assets.” Special cryptocurrency exchanges will be created for trading them, and their activities will be licensed and regulated by the National Bank of Kazakhstan.
The central bank will play a key role in the entire system. It will grant licenses to exchanges, approve specific cryptocurrencies that may be traded, and set limits and restrictions on trading activities on regulated platforms.
This will create an official list of cryptocurrencies permitted for circulation. Details are not yet known, and the Kazakh authorities have not yet published which projects will be included on the list. What is clear, however, is that this will significantly narrow the market and move away from the current model, where it was possible to trade virtually anything.
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The road to a regional crypto hub
Nevertheless, this is not a move against cryptocurrencies as such. Kazakhstan has long pursued its ambition to become a regional center for digital finance in Central Asia.
The country is already actively testing payments using stablecoins, Bitcoin ETF funds were launched there in 2025, and Kazakhstan is one of the major players in the field of cryptocurrency mining. The new regulation is intended to create an environment that is predictable for investors and companies while protecting ordinary users from the risks of an unregulated market.
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Sources:
https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/ardfm/press/news/details/1142426?lang=ru
https://www.gov.kz/memleket/entities/afm/press/news/details/913888?lang=kk
