Kraken Cryptocurrency Exchange Receives Preliminary Approval in Kazakhstan

Kraken, a cryptocurrency exchange based in the United States, has received preliminary approval to operate in the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC). The company plans to launch a trading platform in Kazakhstan and hold digital assets on customers' behalf. However, trading through Kraken's local subsidiary is not yet available because the company has not obtained its final license. The local subsidiary, Payward Kazakhstan, would give customers access to Kraken's global trading network, allowing them to buy and sell cryptocurrencies with traders in other countries. The preliminary approval was issued by the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA). Kraken has not yet announced a launch date or the terms of service for customers in Kazakhstan. The expansion was also discussed at AI & Digital Bridge 2026, an artificial intelligence and technology forum in Astana, where Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov met with the company's co-chief executive, Dave Ripley. The Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development signed a memorandum of cooperation with the company covering digital finance and blockchain technology. The memorandum itself does not authorize cryptocurrency transactions. Kraken, founded in 2011, allows individual investors and financial institutions to trade cryptocurrencies. The exchange is operated by the international Payward group. The approval comes as Kazakhstan tightens oversight of cryptocurrency trading platforms. On October 20, AFSA announced that the AIFC Court had issued restrictions against six cryptocurrency platforms, including Coinbase and HTX, formerly Huobi Global. The court orders, issued in September, prohibit the companies from offering or advertising digital asset services within the AIFC without the required licenses. They also provide for restrictions on access to the platforms through mobile app stores. AFSA warns that an international exchange's reputation does not, by itself, mean it is authorized to operate in Kazakhstan. The regulator recommends checking a platform's license in its official register, as customers using unlicensed platforms may not receive the legal protections available to customers of regulated exchanges. Kraken would join other international exchanges, including Binance and Bybit, which already hold licenses to operate within the AIFC. In September, the government approved a plan to develop the digital asset industry. It also said that the country's national cryptocurrency reserve had reached $700 million, although the National Bank of Kazakhstan said that only about $200 million of the portfolio had been invested at that stage.