AFSA

17 January 2023 08:38:15

2022 has been a productive year in the Astana Financial Services Authority’s (AFSA’s) work, which was reflected in the following:

• Over 500 companies were registered by AFSA.
• 20 companies received a licence to carry on financial and market activities. A license was issued to an Islamic bank - this is the second Islamic bank in the AIFC. In addition to this, for the first time a FinTech Lab participant has graduated from the regulatory sandbox and received a full license. Of all the licenses, 75% were issued to investment companies.
• AIFC financial sector’s assets including investment and insurance companies, banks and the banking sector is worth 689 mln US dollars.
• Assets under management (AUM) of AIFC investment companies are worth 555 mln US dollars, including investment funds’ assets (128 mln US dollars), whose number has reached 20.
• Successful execution of the largest IPO (JSC NC "KazMunayGas") in the history of the stock market of Kazakhstan in accordance with the AFSA regulatory rules, reflecting the best international standards.
• A pilot project on interaction of AIFC-registered crypto exchanges and Kazakhstan’s second-tier banks was launched in 2022.
• The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) declared that the AIFC’s tax regime is compliant with global standards of tax transparency.
• The International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) published an Informal Country Update, recognising the AIFC as a “netting-friendly jurisdiction.”
• The Law "On amendments and additions to certain legislative acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the regulation and development of the insurance and the securities markets” was adopted. The law expands the activities of insurance and re-insurance companies that are AIFC participants and provides opportunities for AIFC participant-banks to open correspondent accounts in second-tier banks in Kazakhstan.
• AFSA played a substantial role in the preparation of the 2030 Financial Sector Development Concept
• In 2022, the AIFC hosted a mutual evaluation mission of the Eurasian Group on Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (EAG), which demonstrated key aspects of the AIFC AML/CFT systems and their compliance with the requirements of the 40 FATF
• In 2022 the AIFC hosted a high-level meeting of Central Asia’s financial regulators, and a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Finance of Tajikistan was signed.

Reference: 

Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) is the independent regulator of the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC), which is established in accordance with the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On the Astana International Financial Centre” for the purposes of regulating financial services and related activities in the AIFC. AFSA administers the AIFC Regulations and Rules and is responsible for the authorisation, registration, recognition and supervision of financial firms and market institutions in the AIFC.

Over 1,700 firms from 70 countries are registered in the AIFC. These firms provide banking, insurance, investment, professional and other services. The range of financial services offered at the AIFC is comparable to the list of services available in long-established financial centers of the world, such as London, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai and others. www.afsa.kz

Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) is an independent jurisdiction that began operations in 2018. In accordance with the 2025 Development Strategy, the key task of the AIFC is to consolidate as a universal platform connecting the countries of the EAEU, Central Asia and South Caucasus. www.aifc.kz