Alatau City Bank is a universal bank in Kazakhstan that previously operated as Jusan Bank. In 2025 Vyacheslav Kim acquired the controlling stake, and the bank adopted the name of the new city of Alatau.
The bank participates in crypto-payment pilots: its acquiring network accepts payments through Binance Pay with automatic conversion into tenge. The projects operate within an experimental regulatory framework; as of August 2026 the bank does not offer a complete product combining a bank account and crypto wallet.
Key parameters of the bank as of 11 August 2026:
| Regulator | Kazakh banking licence, ARDFM supervision |
|---|---|
| Deposit protection | KDIF guarantees for retail deposits |
| Owner | Vyacheslav Kim, ≈97.5% of shares, since June 2025 |
| Scale | Assets ≈₸3.2–3.8trn, sixth in the system, ≈2.5m clients |
| Crypto product | Crypto Pay on Binance Pay, National Bank sandbox |
| Non-resident access | Kazakhstan IIN and, as a rule, a personal visit |
| Current status | Pilot running, Pax Finance channel suspended |
Ownership history and restructuring
The bank went through several ownership changes and a state-supported restructuring. It began in 1992 as Tsesnabank, within the orbit of Adilbek Dzhaksybekov's Tsesna corporation, grew past ₸1trn in assets by 2014 and hit a liquidity crisis in 2018. The rescue cost the state dearly: an emergency National Bank loan of ₸200bn, the purchase of an agricultural portfolio for ₸450bn and Problem Loan Fund bonds worth ₸604bn, with a detailed chronology available from Kursiv.
In 2019 the bank passed to structures connected with the Nazarbayev Fund and became First Heartland Jusan Bank; in 2021 it absorbed ATFBank, from 2020 to 2023 it was controlled through the UK-registered Jusan Technologies, and after lawsuits by the prosecutor's office it returned to Kazakh jurisdiction under the control of Galimzhan Yessenov (≈97.5%). The final turn came in 2025: in February Kim applied to the regulator to buy the 97.5% stake from Yessenov, on 3 June he received approval from the ARDFM, and on 16 June 2025 the bank was re-registered as Alatau City Bank.
The buyer brought the main intangible asset: a reputation as the builder of Kaspi. Kim started in 1993 with the Planeta Elektroniki retail chain, in 2002 bought the small Bank Kaspiysky to underpin its instalment plans, from 2007 turned it together with Mikhail Lomtadze and the Baring Vostok fund into the region's leading fintech, and in October 2020 took Kaspi to an IPO in London. In May 2025 Kim promised to invest ≈$1bn of his own money in building the city of Alatau.
The bank's scale at the point of entry was substantial: assets of ≈₸3.2–3.8trn through 2025, sixth place in the banking system, ≈2.5m clients and 88 branches in 43 cities. Chairman of the management board Kuat Kozhakhmetov nevertheless stresses that the bank remains universal and that reducing it to a single city would be wrong.
Products and pricing
The base is classic retail and business banking. Tenge deposits as of August 2026 differ by rate and conditions:
| Deposit | Rate | Term and conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Sandyq | 16.5% | Up to 6 months, no top-ups |
| Jinaq+ | 15.5% | Monthly payout, top-ups allowed |
| Obshchiy Byudzhet | 14% | — |
| Baytaq | 13.8% | Top-ups and partial withdrawal |
| AQYL | 13.2% | Up to 36 months |
The entry threshold is 1,000–10,000 tenge, and retail deposits sit within the KDIF guarantee perimeter. Add to that Pay Card products, express loans, refinancing and gold bars; for business there is acquiring, payroll projects, tender guarantees and safe deposit boxes.
The crypto layer rests on the Crypto Pay service built on Binance Pay. Since July 2026 Binance Kazakhstan users have been able to pay for purchases in cryptocurrency by QR code and through POS terminals on the bank's acquiring network: the buyer scans a code in the exchange app, selects an asset (in practice most often stablecoins), and the merchant instantly receives tenge through automatic conversion. The project runs in the National Bank's sandbox with support from the Ministry of Digital Development.
The merchant pool is already tangible: the Astykzhan supermarkets, Baskin Robbins, Kaztour Premium, the Max Mara and Fendi boutiques, and the Lexus and Infiniti dealerships in Almaty. The head of Binance Kazakhstan, Nurkhat Kushimov, presents the case as a first step towards everyday crypto settlement; globally Binance Pay serves over 21m merchants with turnover of over $280bn since 2021. The total number of connected outlets in Kazakhstan is not disclosed by either side.
The junction with a licensed crypto exchange
Precision matters here. On 2 July 2026 Pax Finance LLP became the first company in the country to receive a licence from the National Bank of Kazakhstan for the purchase, sale and custody of digital assets. In early August the company announced top-ups of crypto accounts from the Alatau City Bank app, but then deleted the publications: it was listed as an ordinary recipient of payments, the bank did not confirm the partnership, and from 5 August 2026 the channel has been suspended pending completion of banking procedures.
Competitive landscape
The retail heavyweights are still watching from the sidelines: as of August 2026 Kaspi, Halyk and Freedom Bank have no public crypto payment products. The pioneer of the card format was the tandem of Eurasian Bank and the Intebix exchange: since September 2025 the country's first Mastercard crypto cards have run in test mode, offering payment in USDT with automatic conversion into tenge at the exchange's rate, a 1% commission, a daily limit of $1,000 and Apple Pay support; Intebix holds the crypto wallets and the bank does not take digital assets onto its balance sheet.
In the autumn of 2025 the same alliance issued the first tenge-pegged stablecoin on the Solana blockchain; in total eight pilots are running in the National Bank's sandbox, including real estate tokenisation. Against that backdrop the niche of Alatau City Bank is acquiring: it was the first to push a crypto payment through ordinary shops, leaning on Binance's client base. The competition comes down to the question of whose "bank plus exchange" pairing leaves the sandbox for production mode first.
Client availability and limitations
Alatau City Bank already uses its acquiring network for the Binance Pay pilot, but as of August 2026 it does not offer a distinct "bank account plus crypto wallet" product. The publicly announced Pax Finance integration was suspended pending completion of banking procedures.
A non-resident needs a Kazakhstan IIN and, as a rule, a personal visit to open an account. Applicants holding Russian passports undergo enhanced sanctions and AML review; the bank may request additional documentation or decline the relationship.
Operating model
The model is based on acquiring an operating bank with an ARDFM licence, branch network and existing customer base, followed by targeted integrations with licensed digital-asset providers. The first public component is the Binance Kazakhstan payment pilot in the National Bank sandbox.
The bank's connection with the development of Alatau is also reflected in project financing. The bank is allocating $200m of project finance to Iconic Towers, Alatau's first skyscraper at 272 metres and a total cost of ≈$800m, being built by Yuriy Tskhay's Caspian Group and China's CSCEC to designs by Zaha Hadid Architects and SOM.
A separate risk factor is the continuing clean-up of the legacy balance sheet: in June 2026 the board of directors resolved to repay state assistance from the Tsesnabank rescue early, and buying back the rescue bonds consumed almost all of the half-year profit.
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| State assistance to repay, total | ₸125.3bn |
| First tranche, paid 7 August 2026 | ₸35bn |
| Profit for January to June 2026 | ₸4.5bn |
| Loss for June 2026 | ₸39bn |
| Non-performing loans, share of portfolio | 10.7% |
| Non-performing loans, sector average | 6.61% |
The legacy of 2018 is still being cleared out, and the Pax Finance episode adds a third lesson: an unsynchronised announcement ended in a retraction and a suspended service, and regulated crypto banking is built more slowly than it is announced.
Regulation and status
The bank operates under a Kazakh banking licence supervised by the ARDFM, and deposits are insured by the KDIF. The country's crypto circuit is split in two: exchanges operate within the perimeter of the AIFC in Astana, while since 1 May 2026 the National Bank has licensed digital asset exchange operators across the rest of the territory, with Pax Finance the first on 2 July 2026; in 2025 the authorities shut down ≈130 illegal exchangers.
The framework of the zone itself took shape in 2026. The constitutional law granting Alatau the status of a city of accelerated development passed its first reading in parliament on 20 March 2026 and comes into force in stages from 1 July: the city is governed by the Alatau City Authority under a council chaired by the prime minister, regulatory acts are built on English law principles, and disputes are resolved through the AIFC court and international arbitration. For digital assets, meaning crypto exchanges and tokenisation, experimental legal regimes are provided in coordination with the National Bank; the zone's declared pipeline is 53 projects worth over ₸2trn and 51,000 jobs, with participation from Mars, PepsiCo and Joby.
Status as of 11 August 2026: Crypto Pay is running in the National Bank's sandbox, the Pax Finance top-up channel is suspended, repayment of state assistance has begun with the first tranche, and detailed rules for the city's crypto regime are still emerging as secondary legislation.
For the market this is the nearest jurisdiction of legal crypto banking under construction; as an industry case, it is a lesson in entry through M&A, the price of premature announcements and the clean-up of someone else's legacy.
Q/A
Is Alatau City Bank available to non-residents of Kazakhstan?
The bank's retail arm operates under general Kazakh rules: a non-resident needs a local IIN and usually a personal visit, and Russian passports go through enhanced sanctions screening. Special crypto zone rules for non-residents were still taking shape as of August 2026. There are no ready-made remote arrangements.
Which of the bank's crypto functions actually work?
The Crypto Pay service built on Binance Pay: since July 2026 purchases have been paid for in cryptocurrency by QR code and at POS terminals on the bank's acquiring network, with automatic conversion into tenge. Connected merchants include Astykzhan, Baskin Robbins, Max Mara, Fendi and the Lexus and Infiniti dealerships in Almaty; the total number of outlets is not disclosed. The project runs in the National Bank's sandbox with support from the Ministry of Digital Development.
How are the bank and Pax Finance connected?
On 2 July 2026 Pax Finance became the first company to receive a licence from the National Bank of Kazakhstan for the exchange and custody of digital assets. In August the company announced top-ups of crypto accounts from the bank's app but then deleted the publications: it was listed as an ordinary recipient of payments, the bank did not confirm the partnership, and the channel has been suspended since 5 August 2026. Official announcements from the bank itself are the thing to go by.
What is the history of the bank itself?
This is the former Tsesnabank (1992), rescued by the state in 2018–2019 and renamed Jusan Bank under structures linked to the Nazarbayev Fund; in 2023 it returned to Kazakh jurisdiction under the control of Galimzhan Yessenov. In June 2025 Vyacheslav Kim bought 97.5% of the shares and the bank was re-registered as Alatau City Bank. In 2026 the bank began the early repayment of ₸125.3bn of state assistance, with the first tranche of ₸35bn going out on 7 August.
What does the special legal regime give the city of Alatau?
The constitutional law, in force in stages from 1 July 2026, grants Alatau the status of a city of accelerated development: governance through the Alatau City Authority, regulation on English law principles, and disputes resolved through the AIFC court and international arbitration. Experimental regimes for digital assets are provided in coordination with the National Bank, and it is within that framework that the CryptoCity format, with legal payment in cryptocurrency, is meant to come to life.