Kazakh authorities ban banks from transferring money to foreign cryptocurrency exchanges

ASTANA. Oct 16 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan's Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market is planning to introduce new restrictions for banks requiring them to automatically deny payments and transfers to cryptocurrency exchanges not registered with the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC).

This proposal is part of a draft resolution aimed at amending various regulatory acts regarding the activities of financial organizations in Kazakhstan and is available online for public discussion until October 30, 2024.

The restrictions will also affect transfers to electronic and internet casinos, prohibiting legal operators from accepting payments from individuals under 21 years old.

In addition, stricter controls will be imposed on bank clients with more than five cards, down from the previous limit of ten. These clients will face restrictions on transactions, including a maximum of three payments or transfers totaling up to 100,000 tenge per month for transactions involving digital exchanges not registered with the AIFC.

For any single transaction over $1,000 with an AIFC participant providing digital asset management services, banks will be required to conduct enhanced scrutiny of the origins of the client's funds, monitor transactions and prevent illegal transfers of funds abroad, including to offshore accounts.

Currently, cryptocurrency exchanges in Kazakhstan can legally operate only on the premises of the AIFC, established in the country's capital to attract investment for the economy and which has a special tax, currency and visa regime. Ten cryptocurrency exchanges currently operate at the AIFC - Onyx Trade Ltd., Neyco Ltd., Swiftex.io Limited, Bigone Investment Ltd., Top Line Limited, Biteeu Eurasia Ltd., ATAIX Eurasia Ltd., Delta DA Ltd., BN KZ Technologies Limited and Bybit Limited.