The National Bank of Kazakhstan (NBK) launched a new local agency that will be in charge of the CBDC development in the country.

According to an official press release, the new agency will be called the National Payment Corporation. The primary responsibility of the new agency will be to control the national payment system, including money transfers, digital identification, and interbank clearing services.

The initiative for developing the local CBDC, the digital tenge, started at the beginning of 2023. The digital tenge is set to be released in 2025. 

The CDBC development in the country is currently under a pilot phase with actual companies and consumers. Binance partnered with Kazakhstan for the development of the digital currency.

Despite recent issues related to crypto mining, Kazakhstan is generally considered a crypto-friendly destination. It is a crucial access point to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), a burgeoning market swiftly adopting cryptocurrencies.

Most recently, Bybit, currently the second-largest cryptocurrency derivative exchange worldwide by volume, has been granted in-principle approval by the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA) of Kazakhstan to offer a range of crypto services.

Moreover, Binance will soon offer Kazakhstan users services such as deposit and withdrawal of fiat, crypto custody, exchange, and conversion. Bank Freedom Finance Kazakhstan JSC will offer banking services, allowing users in the country to transfer fiat to their Binance accounts.