Kazakhstan’s Central Bank Considers Bitcoin Allocation Following Global Sovereign Wealth Fund Models

Key Points

1. Kazakhstan plans to diversify national reserves by investing in Bitcoin and establishing a national crypto reserve, drawing lessons from global examples like Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global and US digital asset holdings.

2. The country aims to leverage confiscated digital assets to build a national crypto reserve, aligning with broader economic objectives.

3. Kazakhstan is developing a regulatory framework and infrastructure to foster crypto growth, including the introduction of the digital Tenge (CBDC) in November 2023.

4. Despite government initiatives, retail crypto adoption in Kazakhstan remains low, ranking 57th out of 151 countries in Chainalysis’ 2024 Global Crypto Adoption Index.

5. Kazakhstan’s strategy involves benchmarking against international practices and requires careful risk management and regulatory vigilance to become a key crypto hub in Central Asia.