AFM enforcement actions reshape kazakhstan crypto market amid major crackdown on illegal exchanges

Authorities are pursuing an aggressive cleanup as the kazakhstan crypto market evolves under tighter financial oversight and ambitious regulatory reforms.

Over 1,100 unlicensed crypto platforms blocked in Kazakhstan

The Financial Monitoring Agency of Kazakhstan (AFM) has blocked access to more than 1,100 unlicensed online crypto exchangers in the past year. The figure underscores how the state is tightening control over digital asset trading while still promoting a regulated industry.

The number was disclosed by Zhanat Elimanov, head of the AFM, in a report on the watchdog’s 2025 operations presented to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Moreover, the update highlights how enforcement and market development are moving in parallel.

Quoted by the daily Kazakhstanskaya Pravda, Elimanov said AFM investigators completed probes into 1,135 criminal cases involving money last year. As a result, they returned 141.5 billion tenge (over $277 million) to victims of financial crimes.

Criminal networks, shadow exchanges and money mules targeted

Alongside blocking illegal trading websites, the AFM dismantled 15 criminal groups and 29 organizations that were providing cash services outside the law. However, officials say the bigger threat has come from unregistered operators in the digital asset space.

According to the agency, authorities disrupted the activities of 22 shadow crypto exchanges that allegedly laundered proceeds from drug trafficking and fraud schemes. These platforms had offered informal conversion channels, complicating oversight of cross-border flows.

Meanwhile, the broader financial sector has stopped dealing with approximately 2,000 companies and 56,000 individuals suspected of money laundering. With the help of 35 payment institutions, investigators identified 2.1 trillion tenge of criminal flows, an amount estimated at over $4 billion.

Elimanov added that the AFM has frozen around 20,000 bank card accounts linked to money mules working for criminal groups. That said, President Tokayev has issued new instructions to the agency in key areas, signaling that enforcement is likely to intensify.

Kazakhstan balances crypto hub ambitions with strict controls

Kazakhstan emerged as a hotspot for cryptocurrency mining and related activities after China imposed sweeping bans a few years ago. Since then, the government has sought to formalize the industry while keeping illegal activity under pressure.

In 2025, officials lifted some restrictions on the minting of digital coins, aiming to support industrial-scale miners and attract new investment. Moreover, the authorities moved to expand crypto trading beyond the narrow legal perimeter of the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC), where only a small number of licensed platforms had been operating.

As part of its plan to become a Eurasian digital asset hub, the government wants to legalize investments in cryptocurrencies and other tokens. However, payments with such assets will remain banned outside a special pilot project known as CryptoCity, which is designed to test real-world use cases under controlled conditions.

Within this framework, the kazakhstan crypto market is expected to grow through regulated exchanges and institutional participation. At the same time, unauthorized transactions and gray-market intermediaries remain a prime target for continued enforcement.

High-profile seizures and crypto crime investigations in 2025

Coordinated law enforcement operations have intensified against unauthorized cryptocurrency transactions, bringing together multiple state institutions. In September, officials announced the seizure of $10 million worth of digital coins linked to a large crypto pyramid scheme.

The fraudulent project had defrauded investors not only in Kazakhstan, but also in other post-Soviet states such as Belarus and Russia. Moreover, the cross-border nature of the scheme highlighted the region-wide challenges of policing crypto fraud.

Later that month, authorities said they dismantled what they described as the largest crypto money laundering service in Central Asia. The platform, an exchange called RAKS, was reportedly popular on the dark web and had become a central hub for obscuring the origin of funds.

Then, in October, the AFM reported it had shut down almost 130 unlicensed exchanges, allegedly seizing nearly $17 million in virtual assets from their operators. These actions form part of a broad kazakhstan crypto exchange crackdown focused on unregulated providers.

In November, the Ministry of Internal Affairs revealed it had opened more than 1,000 criminal investigations involving cryptocurrencies over the past two years. It estimated the financial damage suffered by victims at over $15 million, underscoring the continued risks in the sector.

Outlook for Kazakhstan’s regulated crypto sector

The latest figures from the AFM illustrate how fast the enforcement landscape is shifting as Kazakhstan refines its digital asset policies. However, officials continue to emphasize that the ultimate objective is a transparent, compliant market rather than a blanket clampdown.

If regulatory reforms succeed, Kazakhstan could consolidate its position as a regional center for mining, trading and crypto infrastructure. That said, sustained supervision of exchanges, payment intermediaries and on-chain activity will remain essential to protect investors and the wider financial system.