The Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market of the Republic of Kazakhstan published its review of the microfinance organisations (MFO) sector for the first half of 2025, pointing to continued balance-sheet and lending expansion alongside a shift from branch-based sales to remote digital channels. It links digitisation to rising fraud risks and describes supervisory tightening that has resulted in licence actions and the removal of participants that did not adapt to new standards. As of 1 July 2025, 212 MFOs were operating, with six licences suspended and 13 revoked during the first half of 2025. Sector assets rose 13% to KZT 1,936bn and the gross microcredit portfolio increased 13.1% to KZT 1,741bn, with microcredits accounting for 78.5% of assets and the top 10 MFOs holding 74% of total assets. NPL 90+ reached 7.0% (KZT 117bn) versus 6.6% (KZT 99bn) at 1 January 2025, while provisions totalled KZT 297bn. BNK Finance Kazakhstan received a banking licence on 13 June 2025 and KMF on 12 August 2025, removing two MFOs that together represented 18.8% of the sector’s loan portfolio; leadership then shifted to auto-finance focused MFOs, including Toyota Financial Services Kazakhstan (KZT 234.4bn portfolio) and MyCar finance (KZT 165.9bn) as of 1 July 2025. From 2026, the Agency plans to introduce mandatory requirements for MFO risk management systems, including elements such as borrower scoring and internal limits by microcredit size and type, alongside expectations for independent risk management and compliance control functions as a second line of defence.

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