The Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market of the Republic of Kazakhstan has developed draft amendments to the country’s Law on Banks and Banking Activity and related legislation, setting out a reform package aimed at stimulating economic activity and further developing the fintech sector. Key measures include introducing basic and universal bank licences to expand competition and support growth in lending to small and medium-sized businesses, widening banks’ ability to take equity stakes in fintech companies, and providing simplified access to a regulatory sandbox to enable the safe rollout of innovations. The package also proposes streamlining bank regulation by removing redundant and outdated rules, consolidating similar requirements, strengthening corporate governance, expanding the use of supervisory judgment, and optimising the structure of supervisory tools; developing Islamic finance by allowing conventional banks to offer Islamic financial products under a single licence; and enhancing conduct supervision through stronger consumer protection, a three-tier system for handling complaints, and greater transparency and accountability for financial institutions. Proposals to increase banking system stability include reforming the framework for dealing with insolvent banks, tightening conditions for using state funds in insolvent bank settlements, and limiting state support for systemically important banks to exceptional cases. The draft texts have been published on the agency’s website.

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