Kazakhstan will be launching a $500M–$1B national crypto reserve fund by January next year. Thus, this major move involves the use of seized assets for secure, regulated crypto investments.
Kazakhstаn is getting ready to introduce a new National Cryptocurrency Reserve Fund. Accordingly, the estimated value of this large fund is between $500 million and $1 billion. This reserve should be up and running by the end of this year or early January. Notably, the main capital of the fund shall be made of assets seized and repatriated from abroad. All in all, the move signals a major strategic pivot for the Central Asian nation.
Investment Strategy Centered on Regulated Securities
Significantly, the planned fund will avoid direct exposure to volatile cryptocurrencies. It will, instead, target regulated financial instruments. National Bank Governor Timur Suleimenov has confirmed that it is taking this cautious approach. The fund is targeting ETFs and equities of companies linked to the crypto sector; this way, the government will be exposed but will be able to manage the market risks effectively. Clearly, the strategy is for long-term stability rather than short-term speculative gains.
The asset pool will draw on wealth recovered from high-profile corruption cases. Concretely, the reserve would be financed by the confiscated assets returned from abroad. Also, the plan is to turn the illicitly obtained digital assets into a state reserve. The Financial Monitoring Agency had earlier announced this in mid-2024. This action is so as to actively support the economic sovereignty of Kazakhstan. The structure of this fund points to a developing trend among national authorities.
AIFC to Oversee Fund Management Amid Broader Digital Push
This major fund will be managed by a state investment vehicle. Foreign partners could be added at some point in the future. According to government sources, the program will fall under the auspices of the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC). For this reason, the AIFC represents the country’s primary financial center for fintech development. No asset managers have been appointed as yet. Nevertheless, the involvement of the AIFC provides a platform of international standards.
Moreover, this reserve fund is part of a much broader national digital strategy. The National Bank already developed legislative amendments this year. These changes established a legal status for crypto exchange platforms. Furthermore, they introduced clear licensing requirements for their operations. Similarly, the regulator approved the issuance of payment cryptocurrency cards in June. These cards are linked to wallets on AIFC-licensed exchanges.
In September, the Astana Financial Services Authority moved further. It allowed for the payment of regulatory fees in stablecoins. The same month, the National Bank revealed a pilot project. It involves launching a new stablecoin pegged to the national currency, the tenge. These parallel moves clearly show a brisk embrace of digital finance. By leaning on regulated securities, the state skillfully avoids thorny custodial challenges. To those who track markets, Kazakhstan’s approach might set an important precedent: that governments could prefer indirect exposure rather than owning cryptocurrencies themselves.