Kazakhstan Aims to Become a Crypto Hub as 100K Russians Flocked to the Country

The President of Kazakhstan – Kassym-Jomart Tokayev – said the authorities are ready to introduce a mechanism that will allow the converting of cryptocurrencies to cash if there is enough demand for such services.

The positive tone toward the digital asset industry comes days after nearly 100,000 Russians entered Kazakhstan to escape the partial military mobilization which Vladimir Putin announced.

Embracing Crypto Even More

In a recent announcement, President Tokayev revealed that the government intends to turn Kazakhstan into a global digital asset center.

Specifically, the authorities seek to introduce a project that will enable the conversion of cryptocurrencies to cash and vice versa in a regulated and secure way. The political leader said this initiative will get completed if residents display enough interest in digital asset operations:

“Currency conversion is already being carried out at the site of the Astana International Financial Center under a special pilot project. For this, quite innovative changes were made to national legislation and the regulatory environment. And we are ready to go further. If this financial instrument shows its further demand and security, then it will certainly receive full legal recognition.”

The migration wave coming from Russia might be one reason why Kazakhstan focused on crypto. A week ago, Vladimir Putin ordered a “partial” mobilization to gather 300,000 men in an effort to reverse the course of the war in Ukraine.

It seems like not all Russians wanted to fight, which led to hundreds of thousands leaving the nation’s borders in a matter of days. The southern neighbor Kazakhstan welcomed more individuals than any other country – around 98,000.

Cryptocurrencies have proved to be a preferred financial tool for war-shaken nations. Prior to that, some Ukrainians who believe digital assets could ease their monetary issues fled to countries with crypto-friendly stances, such as Portugal.

How Does Crypto Develop in Kazakhstan?

The Asian country is primarily known as a main participant in the crypto mining sector. According to the latest estimations, it accounts for over 13% of the global hash rate, meaning that only the US and China are ahead.

In June this year, Galymzhan Pirmatov – Chairman of the National Bank of Kazakhstan – stated that the digital asset niche is an intriguing matter that the institution should not ignore:

“We are interested in the opportunities for innovation that these new technologies give us. Therefore, we will conduct these discussions so that our decisions do not negatively affect macro-stability and the interests of consumers of financial services.”

Days later, the domestic government launched a project to encourage local banks to interact with cryptocurrency exchanges.

A month ago, the world’s largest digital asset platform Binance secured regulatory approval to operate in Kazakhstan.