The Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA), the regulator for the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) in Kazakhstan, has initiated a pilot project to allow entities to pay regulatory fees using USD-pegged stablecoins. The idea was announced at the Astana Finance Days conference on September 4, 2025. The first company to join was the cryptocurrency exchange Bybit.
A New Framework for Digital Payments
Under the new framework, licensed Digital Asset Service Providers (DASPs) can sign a Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding to act as intermediaries. These providers will accept stablecoin payments from AIFC participants and applicants and then remit the equivalent fiat currency to AFSA’s bank account, according to the official announcement. The goal of the project is to make it easier for people to make payments in the financial center and to see how well digital assets work with other things in a controlled setting.
Evgeniya Bogdanova, AFSA’s Chief Executive Officer, stated that the project signals Kazakhstan’s ambition to establish the AIFC as a hub for digital finance. “This initiative represents a first-of-its-kind regulatory framework for payments in stablecoins in the region… while aligning with global trends in stablecoin adoption,” Bogdanova said.
Bybit, the first DASP to join the pilot, echoed this sentiment. “Bybit Kazakhstan is proud to contribute to expanding the payment ecosystem at the beating heart of financial innovation in Kazakhstan, the AIFC,” said Mazurka Zeng, the exchange’s Chief Operating Officer. Zeng noted that the collaboration aims to help businesses capture “borderless opportunities in the stablecoin-powered payment revolution.”
The wave of the stable value asset is growing, with its total market capitalization reaching an all-time high of $251.7 billion in mid-June 2025, according to data from Reuteurs. By integrating stablecoins into its official fee collection process, the AIFC is testing a practical use case for digital assets beyond trading and speculation.
This test project is a big step toward stablecoins being accepted by regulators and being useful in the real world. The AIFC sees it as a way to draw companies that work with digital assets and set itself up as a forward-thinking financial hub in Central Asia. In success case, it can become a role model, showing a match between both public and private sector
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