In a regional first, Kazakhstan’s Astana Monetary Providers Authority (AFSA) will now enable firms to pay license and supervision charges utilizing USD-pegged stablecoins, marking a big shift in regulatory infrastructure towards digital belongings.
The announcement was made Thursday throughout Astana Finance Days 2025, the place AFSA formally launched the pilot undertaking and signed a multilateral memorandum of understanding (MMoU) with centralized alternate Bybit, the primary participant in this system.
AFSA CEO Evgeniya Bogdanova described the initiative as a breakthrough for the area, noting, “This represents a first-of-its-kind regulatory framework for funds in stablecoins and alerts our ambition to place AIFC as a hub for digital finance.”
Beforehand, companies working within the Astana Worldwide Monetary Centre (AIFC) had been restricted to conventional fiat funds similar to financial institution transfers in USD or Kazakhstani tenge, usually leading to delays and excessive transaction prices, particularly for firms whose treasuries are primarily held in digital belongings.
The brand new system permits funds in main USD-pegged stablecoins similar to Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC, offering a sooner, cheaper, and extra clear different for regulatory compliance, in accordance with Bybit.
Corporations wishing to take part should meet AFSA’s eligibility necessities and signal the MMoU. Names of taking part suppliers can be revealed on AFSA’s official web site. Cointelegraph reached out to AFSA for particulars on eligibility however obtained no response by press time.
Trade leaders have praised the transfer. Jesse Knutson of Bitfinex Securities, which has operated in Kazakhstan since 2021, stated the undertaking “demonstrates how central stablecoins like USDt are to the event of tokenised monetary markets.”
The event comes as Kazakhstan deepens its presence within the world crypto ecosystem. In current months, BitGo helped launch Central Asia’s first spot Bitcoin ETF, and authorities officers have hinted at making a state-backed crypto reserve.
With this pilot, Kazakhstan takes a agency step ahead in integrating stablecoins into formal monetary frameworks, setting the stage for additional crypto adoption throughout the area.
