Kazakhstan’s regulated cryptocurrency market has surpassed $10 billion in annual trading turnover as the country expands licensed digital asset services and builds its domestic…
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Kazakhstan’s regulated cryptocurrency market has surpassed $10 billion in annual trading turnover as the country expands licensed digital asset services and builds its domestic Web3 developer ecosystem.
Summary
- Kazakhstan’s regulated crypto market recorded $10.58 billion in trading turnover in 2025, up from $320 million in 2023, while users increased to 215,000.
- More than 8,000 people received Solana ecosystem training over the past year, with over 2,000 earning certificates and Kazakhstan entering the global top 10 for Solana hackathon applications.
- Kazakh Web3 startups received 121 million tenge in grants, while the country hosted a Solana Summit attended by more than 900 participants from over 30 countries.
- Kazakhstan is extending blockchain use into regulated finance through a Solana based exchange traded fund and plans to tokenize up to $60 million in real estate and logistics projects by the end of 2026.
According to Deputy Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Gizzat Baitursynov, trading turnover across the regulated market reached $10.58 billion in 2025, compared with $320 million in 2023, while the number of users rose from 53,000 to 215,000 over the same period.
Baitursynov disclosed the figures during a government meeting on Sept. 15, detailing the expansion that followed Kazakhstan’s initial crypto market pilot with the Astana International Financial Centre and financial regulators.
Launched in 2022, the pilot was designed to test a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency exchanges before becoming the basis for a licensing and operating system within the AIFC.
Kazakhstan has continued building regulatory infrastructure around the growing market. crypto.news previously reported that the country plans to establish a national crypto analytics center to monitor fiat payments, cryptocurrency transfers, wallets and customer information.
National Bank Chairman Timur Suleimenov said the center would operate on the central bank’s SupTech supervisory platform and connect with its existing Anti Fraud Center. Banks, law enforcement agencies and licensed digital asset providers are expected to receive access to its verification tools.
Kazakhstan crypto market grows alongside Solana developer base
Development of the regulated market has been accompanied by programs designed to train blockchain developers and support local Web3 projects.
Talgat Dossanov, head of the Solana Superteam KZ corporate foundation, said more than 8,000 people received training through cooperation with the Solana ecosystem over the past year. More than 2,000 participants completed the programs and received certificates.
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Roughly one in five certified graduates represented a government body, according to Dossanov. Training programs covered blockchain fundamentals, development on Solana, practical assignments and preparation for international hackathons.
Kazakhstan has since entered the global top 10 by the number of applications submitted to international Solana hackathons, Dossanov said.
Local startups have received financial support alongside the training programs. A total of 57 Kazakh startups secured grants worth 121 million tenge, equivalent to approximately $262,000.
The country hosted an international Solana Summit attended by more than 900 participants from over 30 countries. Livestreams distributed through Solana’s social media channels reached an audience of roughly 4 million people, according to the government.
Kazakhstan remains the only country in Central Asia with an official Solana representation, government officials said.
Solana enters Kazakhstan’s financial infrastructure
Work with the Solana ecosystem has moved beyond developer training and startup programs into regulated financial products.
Together with the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange, the country launched an exchange traded fund based on the public Solana blockchain. The product gives the domestic financial market another connection to Solana as regulated investment products tied to the network expand internationally.
Institutional demand for Solana investment products has grown in other markets during 2026. In the United States, the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF surpassed $1 billion in assets in August, less than 10 months after its launch.
Bitwise reported that the fund held 9.33 million SOL worth approximately $1.018 billion as of Aug. 26, with 96% of its assets staked. Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said Solana funds had retained most of the roughly $1.7 billion in accumulated inflows recorded at the time.
Kazakhstan has pursued direct cooperation with organizations in the Solana ecosystem as well. On June 11, Alatau City and the Solana Foundation signed a memorandum in Hong Kong covering further cooperation.
The agreement came as Alatau City develops its role in Kazakhstan’s technology and digital asset plans, while the government continues bringing blockchain based services into regulated financial infrastructure.
Kazakhstan expands state backed crypto programs
Digital asset policy in Kazakhstan now covers trading, mining, payments, market surveillance and state investment programs.
In July, the government approved a strategic crypto mining framework that allows qualifying large scale miners to obtain electricity quotas at regulated tariffs after agreeing to transfer part of their mined cryptocurrency to a reserve mechanism administered through Astana Hub.
Operators seeking strategic status must own a digital mining data center with at least 150 megawatts of installed capacity. Mining equipment at qualifying facilities must provide at least 150 terahashes per second of computing power per unit, while operators face requirements covering staffing, repair facilities, internet connections and tax compliance.
The program sits alongside Kazakhstan’s plans for state exposure to digital assets. Earlier in 2026, the National Investment Corporation earmarked $350 million from foreign currency and gold reserves for crypto related investments.
The country has maintained enforcement against activity outside its licensed market while expanding regulated services. Authorities blocked more than 1,100 online platforms offering cryptocurrency exchange services without authorization during 2025.
Financial authorities had taken action against 36 illegal crypto platforms a year earlier. The operators recorded combined turnover of 60 billion tenge, while authorities seized 4.8 million USDT from unauthorized services.
Tokenization plans target real estate and logistics
Kazakhstan’s next set of blockchain projects includes bringing physical assets into digital markets.
National Bank Governor Timur Suleimenov said the country plans to tokenize up to $60 million worth of real estate and logistics projects by the end of 2026.
The initiative is intended to test digital assets as a source of financing for economic projects, extending Kazakhstan’s blockchain activity from cryptocurrency trading and mining into tokenized assets.
Tokenization converts ownership or economic rights connected to assets into blockchain based tokens that can be issued, transferred and settled digitally. The sector has been attracting growing institutional interest, with the global market for tokenized real world assets reaching roughly $30 billion to $34 billion by mid 2026.
Kazakhstan’s planned projects will follow several regulated crypto initiatives already operating in the country. Bybit Kazakhstan launched the country’s first regulated peer to peer trading platform in November 2025 under an Astana Financial Services Authority license, requiring identity verification and routing fiat payments through corporate accounts held by licensed financial institutions.
The Astana Financial Services Authority began a separate pilot in September 2025 that permits eligible firms to pay regulatory fees using US dollar pegged stablecoins through approved agents.
Regulated crypto payments have since entered the banking system. Alatau City Bank partnered with Binance Kazakhstan in July to introduce Crypto Pay, allowing customers to pay with cryptocurrency through QR codes and point of sale terminals connected to the bank’s acquiring network.
Kazakhstan’s mining industry remains part of the same regulated infrastructure. The Cambridge Digital Mining Industry Report ranked the country fifth globally by Bitcoin mining activity in April 2025, while the government’s strategic mining framework now ties additional regulated electricity access to participation in its state backed digital asset reserve.
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