Kazakhstan’s central bank has signed a memorandum of understanding with stablecoin issuer Tether to explore digital currency infrastructure and asset tokenization, although the country has already launched a tenge-denominated stablecoin through its regulatory sandbox.
The agreement, announced October 7, 2026, brings together Tether, the National Bank of Kazakhstan and the Alatau City Authority to examine stablecoin issuance models, decentralized finance applications and tokenized real-world assets.
The parties intend to prepare a concept and pilot proposal for a stablecoin pegged to Kazakhstan’s national currency, the tenge, alongside a tokenization framework for assets within Alatau City’s special jurisdiction.
However, the memorandum remains exploratory. It does not establish a launch date, identify an issuer, specify a blockchain or confirm reserve arrangements for a new stablecoin.
The distinction is significant because Kazakhstan’s central bank announced its first tenge-backed stablecoin pilot more than a year earlier, demonstrating that domestic experimentation was already underway before Tether’s involvement.
Kazakhstan’s Existing Stablecoin Predates Tether Agreement
On September 23, 2025, the National Bank of Kazakhstan announced the launch of a tenge-denominated stablecoin through its digital asset regulatory sandbox. The initiative involved Intebix, a digital asset exchange registered at the Astana International Financial Centre, working with Solana, Mastercard and Eurasian Bank.
The token, identified in industry reporting as Evo or KZTE, was designed to connect cryptocurrency markets with traditional financial infrastructure. Its intended applications included cryptocurrency-to-tenge conversions and transactions using crypto payment cards.
Unlike a central bank digital currency, which represents a direct central bank liability, a privately issued stablecoin depends on its issuer and the assets supporting its value. The central bank’s original announcement confirmed the pilot’s launch but did not establish its subsequent trading volumes, outstanding supply or current operational scale. Consequently, the existing project should not be confused with a fully deployed national stablecoin system.
Kazakhstan subsequently introduced broader digital asset regulations effective May 1, 2026. The framework distinguishes unsecured cryptocurrencies from digital financial assets, including money-backed stablecoins, tokenized real assets and digital representations of conventional financial instruments. It also establishes licensing and supervisory arrangements for digital asset activities outside the Astana International Financial Centre’s separate regulatory jurisdiction.
Tether Partnership Expands Into Real-World Asset Tokenization
Beyond stablecoin research, the new memorandum proposes developing a framework for tokenizing real-world assets within Alatau City. The parties will identify suitable asset categories, design a conceptual tokenization model and prepare a pilot project.
Tether’s Hadron platform, developed to support asset tokenization, is identified as a potential technology provider, although its adoption has not been confirmed.
The agreement also предусматривает educational workshops and technical training covering stablecoin reserves, issuance structures and blockchain-based financial instruments. National Bank Deputy Governor Binur Zhalenov emphasized financial stability, transaction transparency and investor protection as priorities for the collaboration.
For Tether, the partnership represents an opportunity to participate in Kazakhstan’s developing digital financial infrastructure beyond its established USDT business. However, the agreement does not indicate whether a future Tether-supported stablecoin would replace, complement or operate independently of the existing KZTE project.
Nor does it establish a role for Tether in Kazakhstan’s sovereign digital asset reserves. The next meaningful developments will be the publication of a formal stablecoin proposal, identified reserve and issuance arrangements, and confirmation of which assets and technologies will participate in the Alatau tokenization pilot.
Until then, Kazakhstan’s existing sandbox stablecoin remains a separate initiative from Tether’s newly announced exploratory agreement.
