Foreign banks to enter Kazakhstan's financial market
On Wednesday, the chairman of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, Daniyar Akishev, told journalists that the country's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) opens new areas of activity for branches of foreign non-financial organizations and that starting December 2020 foreign banks, insurance organizations and brokers will be allowed to open branches in Kazakhstan.
"In this regard, the main changes [in the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as the result of adoption of the bill "On Currency Regulation and Currency Control" - Kazinform] include changing the status of currency residence of the branches of foreign organizations operating in Kazakhstan through setting up permanent establishments in accordance with our Tax Code, common for all branches of foreign organizations, concept of residency," he said.
According to Mr. Akishev, branches of foreign organizations will enjoy liberal regime for currency transactions. There are also exceptions to the existing currency regulations for transactions conducted by the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) and the Khorgos International Centre of Border Cooperation.
"The existing information instruments of currency regulation have laid the foundation for the creation of an information base on currency transactions and capital flows and the conduct of analytical monitoring of foreign exchange operations," said Daniyar Akishev.
He also noted that in the context of the risks that capital flows bring for the country's economic and financial stability in the face of ongoing global crisis phenomena, it is advisable to optimize information tools for currency regulation. The draft law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Currency Regulation and Currency Control" provides for a more complete coverage of foreign exchange transactions by statistical monitoring, while simplifying the procedures for conducting such operations and collecting information about them.
"Most of the changes in currency regulation are related to currency transactions of legal entities and do not affect the operations of individuals," the head of the National Bank said.