On 10 September, the 9th edition of Astana Finance Days
2026: Delivering Impact. Capital in Action continues at
the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC), bringing together
investors, representatives of the financial and technology sectors,
regulators, government and quasi-government institutions, and the
international business community.
Day Two focuses on Kazakhstan’s role as a regional financial and
trade hub, the continued development of its capital markets,
aviation finance, private equity, digital assets and Islamic
finance, artificial intelligence infrastructure, the creative
industries, and new sustainable finance instruments.
The second day's business program opens with a plenary session
“From Transit to Transactions: Kazakhstan’s Rise as a Regional
Finance and Trade Hub.” The session features Nurlan
Zhakupov, Chairman of the Management Board of
Samruk-Kazyna JSC; Renat Bekturov, Governor of the
AIFC; Yilmaz Kocagöz, Co-Head of EMEA Emerging
Markets Sales at Goldman Sachs; and Jad Ellawn,
Managing Partner and Regional Head for the Middle East at
Brookfield. The session is moderated by Drew Guff,
Founder Partner and Chief Investment Officer of Siguler Guff.
Participants examine how Kazakhstan's geographic position,
development of tran
sport routes, financial infrastructure, and capital markets can
help transform transit flows into investment projects,
transactions, and long-term partnerships.
The discussion will continue with the session “Kazakhstan’s
Capital Market: What Comes Next?” featuring representatives of
the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA), the Agency of the
Republic of Kazakhstan for Regulation and Development of the
Financial Market, FTSE Russell and the Association of Financiers of
Kazakhstan. Participants will discuss measures to enhance market
liquidity, broaden the investor base and further develop market
infrastructure.
The regional agenda will continue with the session
“Unlocking Investment Flows: Kazakhstan–China Capital Market
Integration.” The session will bring together representatives
of Astana International Exchange, China International Capital
Corporation, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, Shanghai Stock
Exchange and Samruk-Kazyna JSC. Discussions will focus on
cross-border capital raising, access for Kazakhstani issuers to
international investors, and the continued development of financial
cooperation with China.
At the session “Residency through Investment: Positioning
Kazakhstan for Globally Mobile Capital”, representatives of
government authorities and international experts will discuss the
development of investment residency mechanisms, including the AIFC
Investment Tax Residency Programme (ITRP). Through the AIFC’s
partnerships with the global platforms Bybit and Binance, digital
assets traded on AFSA-licensed platforms have become available as a
new investment instrument under the ITRP.
Aviation finance will be one of the key sectoral themes of Day
Two. During the roundtable “The Untapped Potential of the
Regional Aviation Finance Market in Kazakhstan and Central
Asia,” representatives of government authorities, airlines,
airports, cargo operators, financial institutions and leasing
companies will discuss financing for aircraft, aviation
infrastructure and other strategic industry assets.
At the roundtable, the AIFC will present its first analytical
report, Aviation Finance in Kazakhstan and Central Asia: Global
Trends and the Role of the AIFC. The report examines aircraft
financing and leasing models, the experience of international
aviation hubs, the investment potential of Central Asia and the
Caucasus, and the opportunities offered by the AIFC jurisdiction
for structuring aviation transactions.
The successful completion of Kazakhstani cargo airline Jupiter
Jet's first aircraft leasing transaction with an American lessor
will also be announced during the event. The AIFC Aviation Finance
Hub supported the company in structuring the leasing
transaction.
In addition, the AIFC and the Development Bank of Kazakhstan
plan to sign a Memorandum of Understanding to support
sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) projects. The parties
intend to jointly promote the development of SAF projects,
facilitate cooperation among market participants and create
conditions for attracting financing to Kazakhstan’s emerging SAF
sector.
A separate section of the programme is dedicated to the
development of the private equity market. The AIFC, Qazaqstan
Investment Corporation (QIC) and the International Finance
Corporation (IFC) will present a joint report
featuring previously unpublished data on investment activity,
together with the findings of surveys and interviews with market
participants.
The Day Two technology track will examine the AIFC digital asset
ecosystem, the development of Islamic investment instruments and
new forms of market infrastructure. During the session “Beyond
Traditional Markets: The Rise of Derivatives and Prediction
Markets”, representatives of AFSA, ITS, AIX, Bloomberg,
Binance and Orient Capital Management will discuss the application
of new instruments and approaches to their regulation.
A significant part of the programme will focus on transforming
intellectual property into an investable asset. The panel session
“Creative Industries as an Emerging Asset Class: Unlocking
Investment in Film, Music, Gaming, and Digital Content” will
bring together representatives of the music industry, game
development, digital platforms, venture capital funds and
investment companies. Participants will discuss financing
mechanisms for creative projects, intellectual property
monetisation models and the criteria determining the investment
readiness of creative businesses.
The discussion will be followed by Creative Pitch Day
2026. The AIFC’s creative platform received more than
100 applications from the film, music, game
development and digital content sectors. Of these, 19
projects were shortlisted and will be presented to
potential investors.
During the second day of the forum, a number of documents are
expected to be signed, including a Memorandum of Understanding
between the AIFC Green Finance Centre, First Carbon Group Ltd. and
Green Investment Group LLP on cooperation in sustainable finance,
the development of carbon projects and investment attraction; a
Memorandum of Understanding between the AIFC Green Finance Centre
and HYT-CAPITAL LLC on cooperation in the preparation, structuring
and financing of sustainable projects, the development of relevant
financial instruments and investment attraction, including through
the opportunities offered by the capital markets of Kazakhstan and
Uzbekistan; a Memorandum of Understanding between the AIFC and the
Creative Industries Alliance of Qazaqstan on the development of
creative industries, attracting investment into creative projects
and the further development of the AIFC Creative Industries
Platform; Memorandum of Understanding between CodeCoin Tech Ltd.
and Delta DA Ltd., and between CodeCoin Tech Ltd. and JSC Altyn
Bank, on cooperation in cross-border financial services, fintech,
asset management, trade finance and payment infrastructure; as well
as a Memorandum of Understanding between Astana International
Exchange (AIX) and the Kyrgyz Stock Exchange (KSE) aimed at
strengthening cooperation and fostering engagement between the
capital markets of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Another major event will be the launch of trading on
Astana International Exchange in voluntary carbon
market credits verified under the international Verified
Carbon Standard (VCS). AIX will become the first exchange
in Central Asia to provide its own infrastructure for such
trading.
In addition, Tech Hub Ltd. and ōzen will sign a
framework cooperation agreement aimed at developing a music
royalty tokenisation platform in Kazakhstan and Central
Asia.
New investment opportunities associated with artificial
intelligence will be presented during the session “AI as a New
Driver of Capital and Markets”. AIFC Insights
will present its report, AI as Infrastructure: Investment,
Compute, Power and Capital Formation across Kazakhstan and the
Turkic Space, which examines the computing capacity, data
centres, energy and telecommunications infrastructure required for
the development of AI.
The sustainable finance agenda will continue with the
presentation of preliminary findings from a joint AIFC–OECD
study on nature-related financial risks. The initial
analysis covers the banking sector, which accounts for
approximately 91% of the country’s total financial-sector
assets.
During a session on the development of blue finance, the AIFC
Green Finance Centre, the United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) and the Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) will
present their work on Kazakhstan’s first national Blue
Taxonomy and National Blue Bond Issuance Guidelines. These
instruments are intended to establish common criteria for financing
projects related to water security, the modernisation of water
infrastructure, wastewater treatment and the protection of aquatic
ecosystems.
As part of the technology track of the Day Two participants will
discuss new financial instruments and approaches to their
regulation. AFSA will present its newly developed
regulatory framework for testing Event-Based
Contracts during the session “Beyond Traditional
Markets: The Rise of Derivatives and Prediction Markets”.
Payouts under these derivative instruments depend on the occurrence
of a specified financial or economic event. Testing will take place
exclusively within the AIFC FinTech Lab, allowing new products to
be assessed in a controlled regulatory environment.
Furthermore, AFSA has also recognised the Clearing Participation
Certificates to be issued by International Trading System
Limited as a Qualified Investment. The new collateral
instrument is intended to improve liquidity management efficiency
and facilitate access to secured financing through repo
transactions.
The AIFC will also present a concept for establishing the
AIFC Reinsurance Hub, a regional reinsurance
platform for structuring, joint underwriting and reinsurance of
major corporate, energy, infrastructure and transport risks. The
initiative aims to strengthen reinsurance capacity in Kazakhstan
and Central Asia, improve underwriting quality, and expand market
participants' access to international reinsurers. The hub is
expected to utilize the AIFC's financial and legal infrastructure,
including its special regulatory regime and English common law
framework.The parameters of the proposed model will be further
developed in cooperation with government authorities, regulators,
the insurance community, investors and international market
participants.
The Day One of the forum concluded with the announcement of the
AIFC Awards 2026 laureates. The awards recognise
companies and organisations for their significant contribution to
the development, strengthening and promotion of the AIFC ecosystem.
Awards were presented in the following categories:
- Leading Asset Manager — OQAM Finance
Ltd.; - Financial Market Development Leader — International
Trading System Limited; - Excellence in Islamic Finance — MIZAN Islamic Finance
Ltd.; - AIFC Business Establishment Pioneer— Consult
Engineering Group Limited; - Sustainable Finance & ESG Leadership — Global ESG
Partnership NPIO; - Best Digital Customer Experience — Ailat AI
Ltd.; - Best Global Promotion of the AIFC Ecosystem — Fonte
Capital Ltd.; - Best Local Promotion of the AIFC Ecosystem — Abylai
Global Solutions Ltd.
At the AIFC Legal Awards 2026, Sayat
Zholshy Law Firm Limited was named Law Firm of the
Year, while Maxim Burak was named
Lawyer of the Year.
AIFC Special Recognition for contributions to
international cooperation was presented to GulfLink
Ltd., China International Capital Corporation
(CICC), Shanghai Stock Exchange, and the
Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the Republic of
Kazakhstan.
An important component of the forum will be the AFD Exhibition
Hub, an exhibition platform bringing together financial
institutions, banks, investment and asset management companies, and
fintech and technology projects. Participants will present their
products, solutions and achievements while establishing direct
contact with potential partners and investors.
Astana Finance Days 2026 is being held with the support of its
partners. Freedom is the forum’s Gold Partner; Solidcore Resources,
KAZ Minerals and ITS are Silver Partners; LMAX Group and Teniz
Capital Investment Banking are Bronze Partners; Allur is the
Industry Partner; Binance is the Crypto Partner; Mastercard is the
Fintech Partner; Air Astana is the Official Airline; and Euronews
is the International Media Partner. Other partners include Orient
Capital Management, Dana Capital Limited, BI Group, CICC, Roemer
Capital (Europe), Masdar, E Fund Management (Hong Kong), Abylai
Global Solutions, Symphony Digital Assets, Fitch Ratings, AmCham
Kazakhstan, Solana, Halyk Finance, MYD Production, Atlas Capital,
PwC, Anchorage Digital, Alif, Jupiter Jet, RCS Group, Zubr Capital,
Vitis Capital, Amicorp, Code Coin and others.
Reference:
The Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) is an
independent jurisdiction where investors and business meet emerging
opportunities of Kazakhstan and Central Asia in a transparent and
sustainable environment backed by the principles of English Common
Law. www.aifc.kz
AIFC Press Office,
Ainur Issabayeva, press secretary
E-mail: [email protected]
