Kazakhstan plans to launch a pilot zone called “CryptoCity,” where cryptocurrencies can be used to pay for goods and services, according to a May 29 announcement on the official website of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
Speaking at the Astana International Forum 2025, Tokayev said that Kazakhstan will create a CryptoCity pilot zone to explore cryptocurrency adoption within a regulated sandbox environment.
“We are planning to create a pioneering pilot zone called CryptoCity where cryptocurrencies might be used for purchasing goods, services, and even beyond,” he said.
A May 29 report by local news outlet Tengri News cited Kazakhstan’s Minister of Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev explaining that “the government and regulators are currently working together to determine the most suitable location.” One city is already under serious consideration.
“Of course, the most promising place for CryptoCity is the new city of Alatau – it’s the President’s initiative,“ he said.
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Why build a CryptoCity in Alatau?
Alatau is a settlement relatively close to the south-eastern border of Kazakhstan. It was established in 1957 as an unnamed settlement for scientific institutions and their workers and houses the Institute of Nuclear Physics, the Kazakhstan National Nuclear Center, with an experimental nuclear reactor and cyclotron, and the Physics and Technology Institute.
Other than serving as Kazakhstan’s research hub, Alatau also already hosts the special economic zone known as “Innovation Technology Park.” Consequently, regulators may feel that adding another one to the mix is a natural step that could result in synergies that might attract additional capital. Madiyev shed light on how ubiquitous crypto would be in the area:
“The concept is that cryptocurrency would be used as a means of payment — to pay in restaurants, cafes, buy real estate, make investments. I believe this could be a major breakthrough for the blockchain industry.“
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Kazakhstan bets on crypto
Madiyev expressed his hope that the project would attract developers, programmers and IT specialists to Kazakhstan, thereby boosting local economic growth.
While noting that the focus is on working on the regulatory framework, he said that “the city itself is already under development” and highlighted that “CryptoCity implies free circulation of cryptocurrency, crypto-friendly legislation and crypto as a legitimate means of payment.”
“These conditions need to be reflected in the law,“ he added.
This is just the latest of several recent crypto-related announcements to emerge from Kazakhstan. Earlier in May, Kanysh Tuleushin, the country’s first vice minister of digital development, said that Kazakhstan has the potential to become a leading crypto hub in Central Asia if regulatory restrictions are eased.
In late 2024, Kazakhstan launched a new pilot project with its central bank digital currency, which reportedly drastically reduced value-added tax refund wait times.
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