Kazakhstan Frontier

Economy & industry overview

Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country by area and the largest economy in Central Asia, with a nominal GDP estimated at approximately $310 billion in 2025. The economy is heavily driven by hydrocarbons, with oil and gas accounting for roughly 35% of GDP and about 75% of export revenues; the Tengiz oilfield expansion contributed to a record 6.5% GDP growth in 2025. Kazakhstan is also the world's largest uranium producer, a major wheat exporter, and is diversifying through fintech, telecoms, and transport logistics. The Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE), founded in 1993 and headquartered in Almaty, had a total equity market capitalisation of approximately $76 billion at end-2025, with around 280 issuers across all security types. A parallel exchange, the Astana International Exchange (AIX), operates under the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) framework and provides access to internationally-oriented listings.

Key sectors

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Macro

GDP nominal, USD	$310.00B
GDP growth real, annual	6.5%
Inflation annual	12.3%
Population people	21.1M
GDP per capita USD	$15,400
Market cap total listed, USD	$76.30B
Market cap / GDP	24.6%
Unemployment	4.6%
Listed companies	280
Exchange	Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE)

Data year: 2025. Sources: https://kase.kz/en/information/news/show/1558754 (KASE 2025 annual results), https://astanatimes.com/2026/01/kase-says-2025-trading-volume-reached-785-billion-up-3/ (Astana Times, Jan 2026), https://kz.kursiv.media/en/2025-10-10/engk-yeri-kazakhstans-stock-market-cap-tops-72-billion/ (Kursiv, Oct 2025), https://kz.kursiv.media/en/2024-12-26/engk-nknk-kaspi-kz-hits-20-billion-in-market-capitalization-emerging-as-kazakhstans-most-valuable-public-company/ (Kursiv, Dec 2024), https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/d5f32ef28464d01f195827b7e020a3e8-0500022021/related/mpo-kaz.pdf (World Bank Kazakhstan MPO 2025), https://www.imf.org/external/datamapper/profile/KAZ (IMF DataMapper Kazakhstan April 2026), https://kase.kz/en/information/news/show/1564301 (KASE Index constituents May 2026), https://nomadcapitalist.com/global-citizen/kazakhstan-golden-visa/ (Kazakhstan Golden Visa 2025, Nomad Capitalist), https://discusholdings.com/news/2025/05/07/kazakhstan-golden-visa-300000-usd-2025 (Discus Holdings, May 2025), https://stockanalysis.com/list/kazakhstan-stock-exchange/ (StockAnalysis KASE list), https://stockanalysis.com/quote/kase/KMGZ/market-cap/ (KMG market cap, StockAnalysis), https://stockanalysis.com/quote/kase/HSBK/market-cap/ (Halyk Bank market cap, StockAnalysis), https://stockanalysis.com/quote/kase/CCBN/market-cap/ (Bank CenterCredit market cap, StockAnalysis), https://etfdb.com/country/kazakhstan/ (ETFdb Kazakhstan exposure), https://kase.kz/en/foreign/ (KASE foreign investor guide), https://caspianpost.com/kazakhstan/kazakhstan-s-unemployment-rate-stands-at-4-6-in-h1-2025 (Caspian Post, unemployment 2025), https://www.x-rates.com/average/?from=USD&to=KZT&amount=1&year=2025 (USD/KZT avg 2025), https://kase.kz/uploads/KASE_announces_exchange_market_results_for_Q3_and_nine_months_of_2025_b2cd4ae585.pdf (KASE Q3 2025 results press release), https://astanatimes.com/2024/02/air-astana-begins-trading-on-lse-aix-and-kase/ (Air Astana IPO, Astana Times 2024).

Local exchange & access

Exchange	Kazakhstan Stock Exchange
Code	KASE
Website	kase.kz/en
Currency	KZT

Local broker access

Foreign investors must trade KASE-listed equities through a Kazakhstani-licensed brokerage; direct foreign access without a local intermediary is not permitted under exchange rules. Key local brokers include Halyk Finance, Freedom Finance (parent company Freedom Holding Corp trades on NASDAQ as FRHC), and BCC Invest. For internationally accessible exposure, Kaspi.kz (NASDAQ: KSPI) is the primary US-listed option; Kazatomprom (LSE: KAP.L), Halyk Bank (LSE: HSBK.L), and Air Astana (LSE: AIRA.L) offer London GDR routes. The iShares FM ETF provides passive frontier-market exposure that includes Kazakhstan. No single-country Kazakhstan ETF is currently available on US exchanges; the FinEx FFIN Kazakhstan Equity ETF (FXKZ), formerly listed on the Moscow Exchange, has been inaccessible to Western investors since 2022 sanctions.

Global brokers with foreign-market access

• Interactive Brokers — Direct access to 90+ markets worldwide, including many emerging exchanges.
• Saxo Bank — Multi-market access across Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
• Charles Schwab (Global) — Foreign ordinary shares on select markets; US-listed ADRs and ETFs.
• Fidelity International Trading — International stock trading on a number of developed and emerging markets.

Listed for convenience only — not a recommendation. Available markets, fees and onboarding rules differ by broker and by your country of residence.

Relocation & residency

Foreign-investor access

Foreign nationals may invest in KASE-listed securities but must do so through a licensed Kazakhstani brokerage firm or register directly with KASE or the AIFC. There are no general foreign ownership restrictions on equities, though certain strategic sectors (energy, defence, media) may have ownership caps under Kazakhstani law. Currency transfers related to foreign investments are largely unrestricted, but transfers exceeding USD 10,000 require a currency contract presented to the servicing bank. International investors can also access dual-listed Kazakhstani companies via the Astana International Exchange (AIX) or through London Stock Exchange GDR listings (Halyk Bank: HSBK.L; Kazatomprom: KAP.L; Air Astana: AIRA.L). The AIFC operates its own common law-based legal framework with a dedicated court and regulator designed to attract foreign capital.