Kazakhstan proposes stricter controls for bank transfers to foreign crypto exchanges: report

Kazakhstan’s financial watchdog is set to implement new restrictions that would require banks to automatically deny banking transfers to overseas crypto exchanges.

The Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Regulation and Development of Financial Market, which oversees the country’s financial sector, is considering new measures that would require banks to deny transfers to overseas crypto exchanges that have not registered with the local financial center.

According to a Wednesday report from Russian state-led news outlet TASS, in addition to transfer limits to crypto exchanges, the regulator’s draft also proposes restricting transactions involving online casinos and forbidding operators from accepting payments from individuals under 21 years of age.

The draft also suggests blocking transfers totaling no more than 100,000 tenge (around $205) per month when dealing with unregistered crypto exchanges. Additionally, banks will be required to conduct enhanced due diligence for any transactions exceeding $1,000, even with registered crypto exchanges.

Kazakhstan tightens regulation of crypto exchanges

Crypto exchanges in Kazakhstan are allowed to offer their services only when they operate within the financial center in Astana, which offers a special tax, currency, and visa regime. As of press time, the country has 10 regulated crypto exchanges, including Binance and Bybit.

Recently, Kazakhstan has increased its regulatory scrutiny of non-licensed crypto exchanges, freezing $1.2 million in crypto linked to nearly two dozen illegal over-the-counter platforms. As crypto.news reported earlier, Kazakhstan is targeting not only small exchangers but also major players. In December 2023, the country banned Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, over allegations of violations of local crypto regulations.

At the time, the Ministry of Information confirmed that access to Coinbase was restricted at the request of the Ministry of Digital Development due to the exchange’s trading activities, which were found to violate Kazakhstan’s Law on Digital Assets. The law prohibits the issuance and circulation of uninsured digital assets and the operation of exchanges trading such assets.