Kazakhstan has enacted sweeping new legislation that sharply narrows how cryptocurrencies can be traded inside the country, placing full control over approved digital assets in the hands of the central bank.
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has signed amendments to the Law on Banks and Banking Activities, formally empowering the National Bank of Kazakhstan (NBK) to regulate which cryptocurrencies may legally circulate and trade. The move centralizes oversight of the digital asset market and significantly tightens the regulatory perimeter for exchanges and investors.
Central Bank Control Over Tradable Assets
Under the new framework, the NBK will maintain an official registry of digital assets approved for trading within Kazakhstan. Only cryptocurrencies explicitly listed by the central bank will be permitted on licensed platforms, effectively ending open-ended listings that mirror global exchanges.
The law introduces a formal classification for Digital Financial Assets (DFAs), dividing them into three categories:
- Fiat-backed stablecoins
- Tokenized physical assets
- Electronic financial instruments
Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) are categorized separately as “unsecured digital assets,”placing them under stricter supervisory control rather than treating them as neutral commodities.
Licensing and Enforcement Tighten Further
All cryptocurrency exchanges and digital asset platforms operating in Kazakhstan must now obtain a specific license from the NBK. Licensed venues will be required to limit their trading pairs exclusively to assets approved by the central bank, which could result in significantly reduced product offerings compared to international versions of the same platforms.
Authorities have already demonstrated a hard enforcement stance. Over the past year, access has been blocked to more than 1,100 unlicensed crypto-related websites, signaling that compliance will be actively policed rather than loosely enforced.
Banks Gain New Digital Powers
While restrictions are tightening for crypto trading, the legislation simultaneously expands the role of traditional banks in the digital economy. Commercial banks are now permitted to:
- Invest in fintech companies
- Develop digital financial products
- Participate in infrastructure supporting the digital tenge, which is now legally recognized as Kazakhstan’s national digital currency
This dual-track approach channels crypto activity into regulated institutions while limiting retail exposure to unapproved assets.
Strategic Shift After Mining Boom
The law follows Kazakhstan’s rapid emergence as a global crypto mining hub, with the country controlling an estimated 13% of global Bitcoin hashrate. Rather than allowing mining dominance to translate into a loosely regulated trading market, the government is moving toward tighter state control.
Kazakhstan is also preparing to establish a $1 billion National Cryptocurrency Reserve by early 2026, funded in part through seized digital assets and state-mined coins. The new regulatory framework lays the legal groundwork for that strategy by clearly separating state-managed digital assets from speculative retail trading.
Taken together, the legislation signals a decisive shift: Kazakhstan is not banning crypto, but it is firmly repositioning it as a centrally supervised financial activity, with the National Bank acting as the gatekeeper for what the market is allowed to trade.
