Kazakhstan to Officially Launch Digital Tenge on July 18

ALMATY – Kazakhstan will officially put the digital tenge into circulation on July 18, marking the next stage in the country’s central bank digital currency project that has been under development since 2021.

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The launch is provided by amendments to Kazakhstan’s legislation on financial market regulation, communications and bankruptcy, which recognize the digital tenge as a legal form of the national currency alongside cash and non-cash money.

Under the new rules, the National Bank of Kazakhstan (NBK) will be the sole institution authorized to issue, circulate and redeem digital tenge. Digital wallets will operate via NBK’s Digital Tenge Platform, while banks and other licensed payment providers will provide access to users through their existing applications and services.

According to the law, digital accounts will be opened upon a customer’s request, following execution of an agreement with a participating financial institution. Payments and transfers can only be made from the available balance, and savings digital accounts are not permitted.

The legislation also defines the main functions of digital accounts, including receiving and transferring digital tenge, exchanging digital currency for cash or funds in a bank account, providing transaction statements, and executing legally authorized seizures. The platform will also support smart contracts and tokenized digital tenge under rules established by the National Bank.

The rollout represents what National Bank Digital Transformation Adviser Binur Zhalenov has described as “an absolutely logical step” in Kazakhstan’s digital transformation.

“We do believe that the digital economy requires digital means of payment,” Zhalenov said in an interview with The Astana Times. “Many people confuse digital money with electronic money. The thing is that there should be no difference for the end consumer. The end consumer just wants secure, cheap, safe payments.”

According to him, unlike money held in commercial bank accounts, which represents claims on private banks, the digital tenge is a direct liability of the National Bank, giving it the same backing as physical cash while remaining fully digital.