As Russians swarm to the country, Kazakhstan is prepared to legalize cryptocurrency

SNEAK PEEK

  • If there is a need, Kazakhstan is ready to legalize a system for converting cryptocurrencies to cash, according to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
  • Tokayev emphasized that Kazakhstan aims to be a global leader in digital technology during his remarks at the international conference Digital Bridge 2022.
  • The president of the country reportedly visited a joint exhibit set up by Eurasian Bank at the Digital Bridge 2022 event.

According to a report by the local news agency Informburo on September 28, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated that Kazakhstan is prepared to legalize a system for converting cryptocurrencies to cash if there is a demand.

Tokayev stressed during his speech at the international conference Digital Bridge 2022 that Kazakhstan wants to lead the world in digital technology, the cryptocurrency ecosystem, and controlled mining. He mentioned that Kazakhstan’s national law has been amended by the government to test a mechanism for converting cryptocurrency at the Astana International Financial Centre.

We are prepared to advance. This financial instrument will undoubtedly be given full legal status if it continues to demonstrate its significance and security, Tokayev said.

At the Digital Bridge 2022 event, the president of the nation reportedly stopped by a combined exhibit set up by Eurasian Bank, a significant local lender, and the Intebix cryptocurrency exchange.

Local media reported that the Eurasian Bank and Intebix performed the bank’s first regulated crypto-for-fiat transaction together. The legality of Kazakhs buying cryptocurrency with their currency, the tenge, has made the precedent a significant turning point in Kazakhstan’s acceptance of cryptocurrencies.

ATAIX, a cryptocurrency exchange, as well as Altyn Bank and Halyk Bank, Kazakhstan’s largest bank, are additional organizations involved in the pilot cryptocurrency programs.

The announcement comes as hundreds more Russians invade Kazakhstan, a week after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization of reserves to fight in Ukraine. Halyk Bank stopped accepting Russian Mir payment cards on September 21 in response to Treasury Department of the United States warnings concerning sanctions.

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev enacted higher tax rates for companies engaged in bitcoin mining on July 11. These modifications reflect the country’s growing irritation with the undertaxed and covert use of the national energy infrastructure by both foreign investors and domestic offenders, but the new fees hardly meet the definition of exclusionary measures.

Additionally, they might herald the further acceptance and legitimacy of mining in Kazakhstan, a nation rich in energy, making the nation and the area an even more alluring location for miners in the face of intensifying pressure in more established jurisdictions.