BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 13. President of
Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has reviewed the implementation of
monetary policy and key economic indicators for the period from
January through July 2026.


According to the press service of the Kazakh president, the
discussions took place during a meeting with National Bank Chairman
Timur Suleimenov. He presented a report on the economic situation,
business activity, inflation factors, lending dynamics, the state
of Kazakhstan’s reserves, and measures aimed at maintaining price
stability.


The National Bank chairman informed the President that annual
inflation has been declining for the tenth consecutive month,
reaching 10.2% in July 2026. According to the report, the trend has
been supported by monetary policy measures, the strengthening of
the tenge exchange rate, stabilization of consumer activity, and
coordinated anti-inflation measures implemented by the Government
and the National Bank.


Suleimenov also reported on lending trends, noting that as of
July 1, 2026, the banking sector’s loan portfolio for businesses
increased by 17.1% year-on-year, while lending to small and
medium-sized enterprises grew by 29.6%. At the same time, consumer
lending growth slowed from 21% at the beginning of the year to 13%,
indicating a shift in credit resources toward business financing,
according to the National Bank. "The Head of State was informed
about the measures being taken to ensure price stability and
achieve the medium-term inflation target of 5%," the press service
stated.







The meeting also covered Kazakhstan’s foreign exchange market,
the National Fund, the Unified Accumulative Pension Fund and
international reserves. As of July 1, 2026, the combined volume of
the National Fund and foreign exchange reserves amounted to $127.3
billion.


Suleimenov informed Tokayev about the implementation of measures
related to the development of digital financial assets and national
digital financial infrastructure. The new areas include the use of
stablecoins for cross-border payments, the development of
infrastructure for digital assets, and the issuance of tokenized
government assets.


The National Bank has also introduced QR payments and transfers
by phone number between customers of different banks as part of the
National Payment System. Since the launch on July 19, the system
has processed 6.5 million transactions worth 170 billion tenge
($365.7 million). Tokayev instructed the National Bank to continue
efforts aimed at stabilizing inflation and developing Kazakhstan’s
financial ecosystem, including measures related to the
implementation of digital financial technologies.