Astana Finance Days 2026 brought together 8 thousand participants from 90 countries

Astana Finance Days 2026 gathered 8 thousand participants from 90 countries

On September 9–10, the Astana International Financial Centre is hosting the IX financial forum Astana Finance Days 2026: Delivering Impact. Capital in Action.

The forum brought together about 8 thousand participants from 90 countries, including investors, representatives of the financial and technological sectors, regulators, state and quasi-state institutions, as well as international business.

The business program focuses on the development of capital markets and investment products, improving regulation and the legal environment, implementing institutional-scale innovations, financing the real sector of the economy, as well as regional and cross-border cooperation.

"Today, competition for capital requires not only attractive conditions, but also the ability to turn opportunities into real projects and investments. This is the essence of Astana Finance Days 2026 — Delivering Impact. Capital in Action. We bring together investors, regulators, and business so that ideas become practical solutions, investment projects, and long-term partnerships," noted Renat Bekturov, Governor of the Astana International Financial Centre.

Financial system in the context of technological transformation

The program of the first day included sessions on the role of sovereign and institutional capital in economic growth, the future of financial infrastructure, tokenization of real assets, investor rights protection, sustainable finance, and the development of real sector projects.

The key event was the plenary session "Transformation of the Financial Architecture." It was attended by Timur Suleimenov, Chairman of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, Renat Bekturov, Governor of the AIFC, Timur Turlov, CEO of Freedom Holding Corp., Balaji Srinivasan, founder of Network School and author of the book The Network State, and Sergio Mello, Global Head of Stablecoin Solutions at Anchorage Digital.

Participants discussed how technology, regulation, and new capital flow models affect the structure of financial markets. Special attention was paid to digital assets, the digital tenge, crypto reserves, artificial intelligence regulation, and the development of decentralized finance.

A separate perspective on the outlook for capital markets was presented by Ben Powell, Managing Director and Chief Investment Strategist for the Middle East and Asia-Pacific at the BlackRock Investment Institute.

At the session "Sovereign and Institutional Capital as Catalysts for Growth and Strategic Transformation," participants examined the role of state and institutional investors in ensuring long-term economic development, structural transformations, and the implementation of large-scale projects.

Tokenization and digital infrastructure

The technological block of the forum continued with the sessions "The Future of Financial Infrastructure" and "Capital Without Borders: Tokenization and New Financial Infrastructure."

Representatives of the Development Bank of Kazakhstan, the National Payment Corporation of Kazakhstan, Mastercard, Janus Henderson Investors, Bir Ecosystem, Phillip Securities, Solana, The Open Platform, and Commodity Chain discussed the development of payment infrastructure, digital assets, and new mechanisms for capital movement.

One of the topics of the program was the financing of early-stage exploration companies and mining projects. Within the framework of the session "Financing Junior Mining Projects: Challenges and Opportunities," representatives of specialized companies and financial organizations delivered speeches.

In April 2026, the AIFC launched the Junior Mining Platform to attract investment into early-stage exploration projects. Out of 48 applications received, 23 projects passed the selection process and were presented to potential investors during the forum's pitch session.

Green finance and regional cooperation

Within the framework of Astana Finance Days 2026, the second annual meeting of the Turkic Green Finance Council was also held. It brought together representatives of financial regulators, government bodies, and development institutions of the countries of the Turkic region.

Among the participants were Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States, Baghdad Amreyev, President of the Turkic Investment Fund, as well as representatives of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, the Kyrgyz Stock Exchange, the Hungarian National Bank, the AIFC Green Finance Centre, and other organizations.

The session "Financial Intelligence in the Digital Age: From Digital Assets to AI" was dedicated to financial security issues. Representatives of international and financial organizations examined the impact of digital technologies on identifying financial risks and the interaction between the state and the private sector.

A separate track was dedicated to the legal infrastructure of the AIFC. At the session "Capital in Action: How the AIFC Court and IAC Protect Investor Rights," mechanisms for international dispute resolution, digital tools, and institutional approaches aimed at increasing transparency and investor confidence were discussed.

Uzbekistan — participant in the regional financial dialogue

The regional track of the forum continued with the AFSA roundtable "From Fragmentation to Integration: Regional Cooperation to Strengthen Financial Markets."

The discussion was attended by representatives of financial regulators from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Georgia, international financial organizations, and development institutions, including the ADB, EBRD, World Bank, and the International Finance Corporation.

Participants examined the main barriers to cross-border capital movement, issues of mutual recognition, expanding access to financial markets, information exchange, and strengthening cooperation in the field of supervision.

Thus, Uzbekistan's participation in the regional track of Astana Finance Days 2026 became part of a broader dialogue on the development of financial integration and the expansion of cross-border investment cooperation in Central Asia.

AIFC presented an intelligent digital assistant

For the first time within the framework of the forum, the AIFC presented AIDA — AIFC Intelligent Digital Assistant, a multilingual intelligent assistant for client advisory support and navigation through the services of the Astana International Financial Centre.

The system processes text and voice queries, provides information on registration in the AIFC, current requirements, procedures, and available services, and, if necessary, directs the user to the appropriate department or specialist.

Forum participants were able to test AIDA's performance in different languages in real time.

New agreements and investment projects

Within the framework of the forum, the signing of a number of documents aimed at developing international regulatory and investment cooperation is planned.

Among them are memorandums of understanding between the National Bank of Georgia and the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA), as well as between AFSA and the Croatian Financial Services Supervisory Agency (HANFA).

In addition, within the framework of the grain tokenization project in the AIFC jurisdiction, the signing of agreements is planned between Tech Hub Limited and Concordia Group Ltd., as well as between Tech Hub Limited and Aitas Agro Ltd.

An important part of the forum was the exhibition area AFD Exhibition Hub, which brought together financial institutions, banks, investment and management companies, fintech, and technological projects. Participants presented their products and solutions, and also had the opportunity to establish direct contacts with potential investors and partners.

Holding Astana Finance Days 2026 served as a platform for discussing key trends in the global financial system, including digitalization, asset tokenization, the development of artificial intelligence, green finance, and cross-border capital movement.

The forum also contributed to strengthening regional financial cooperation and expanding investment interaction between the countries of Central Asia and international markets.