Kazakhstan Tax Break Aims to Pull 1M Crypto Wallets Onshore

Nurkhat Kushimov, general manager of Binance Kazakhstan, called the tax break the decree's most important measure, saying it makes licensed jurisdictions more attractive. Bakhytzhan Kenzhebayev, who chairs Kazakhstan's Association of Fintech, AI and Crypto Industry, said the exemption removes a key uncertainty for investors, though he warned that loose legal definitions could invite abuse and force a reversal within a year or two.

The decree also addresses the electricity problem that broke Kazakhstan's first mining boom. After China banned Bitcoin mining in 2021, the country became the second-largest mining hub after the United States, ranking third globally by hash rate in 2022. That surge overwhelmed the aging grid, and three power plants in the northeast shut down in an emergency in October 2021, triggering blackouts. Miners at their peak drew an estimated 8% of national electricity output.

The new rules let oil and gas fields divert associated petroleum gas the state does not need into autonomous generators for mining. A parallel "70/30" model gives data centers and miners direct access to up to 70% of new capacity built through infrastructure upgrades.

In April, the Astana Financial Services Authority named HTX, Bitget, OKX, and MEXC as unlicensed operators, Cryptopolitan reported at the time. Separately, the OECD's Global Forum said Kazakhstan is implementing the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework ahead of its first automatic exchanges of crypto tax data in 2027.

The decree also sets rules for using stablecoins in cross-border settlement, expanding the legal framework beyond trading activity.