ASTANA, Kazakhstan, January 16. Kazakhstan has officially recognized the digital tenge as a legal form of national currency, Trend reports via the Kazakh National Bank.
This change was formalized with the signing of the "Law on Banks and Banking Activities" and amendments to the "Financial Market Regulation and Bankruptcy" by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
The digital tenge is now officially recognized as a legitimate means of payment in Kazakhstan. The National Bank has been designated as the sole issuer, and transactions will be conducted through licensed financial market participants. The integration of smart contracts and programmability will enable the creation of innovative financial services and enhance transparency in government spending.
Furthermore, the legal framework strengthens the status of Kazakhstan’s National Digital Financial Infrastructure (NDFI), encompassing the National Payment System, Interbank Payment Systems, the Digital Tenge platform, Open Banking, and Biometric Identification Systems. These initiatives are designed to improve banking efficiency, expand mobile and QR payment options, and drive innovation in the financial sector.
Simultaneously, Kazakhstan has introduced a comprehensive regulatory framework for the issuance of digital financial assets (DFAs) and the supervised circulation of unsecured cryptocurrencies. This framework establishes the necessary infrastructure requirements and defines the regulatory powers of relevant authorities.
In 2022, the National Bank of Kazakhstan, together with market participants, the expert community, and international partners, began studying the necessity of implementing a digital tenge. By the end of the same year, based on the results of the research, a decision was made to implement the digital tenge in three phases. The first phase of the digital tenge rollout took place in 2023.