Kazakhstan officially launches digital tenge

The chairman of Kazakhstan’s Nationwide Fee Company (NPC), Binur Zhalenov, has made the primary transaction with the nation’s new central financial institution digital forex (CBDC), the digital tenge. Throughout his speech on the XI Congress of Finance in Almaty on Nov. 15, he paid with a debit card tied to the CBDC account, according to native outlet, Kapital.kz. 

Zhalenov unveiled the official launch of the digital tenge on Kazakhstan’s retail market at present, promising the “huge platform’s growth” in 2024. Based on the official, Kazakhstan collaborated with Visa and Mastercard, in addition to native banks, to combine the CBDC into plastic playing cards:

“It permits you to pay with a digital tenge from wherever on the planet, utilizing Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and different devices.”

Zhalenov has additionally highlighted the programmable potential of the digital tenge, which could possibly be utilized in good contracts, revolutionary monetary providers and digital asset transactions. In 2024, he mentioned, the CBDC growth will deal with offline funds, and by 2025, the NPC expects to undertake the digital tenge in cross-border commerce. 

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Growth of the digital tenge started in February 2023, with an preliminary launch deadline set for 2025. The NPC itself was established in September to lead the development and implementation of the CBDC.

In parallel with the swift CBDC rollout, Kazakh authorities have tightened their scrutiny over the crypto market. In September, local media noticed problems accessing Coinbase, Kraken and other major international crypto exchanges without a local license. In October, native crypto mining operators signed an open letter to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, asking to chop the newly introduced tax rates on mining actions.

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