Kazakhstan plans to issue tokenized government bonds, probably in the first quarter of 2027. National Bank of Kazakhstan Governor Timur Suleimenov gave the timeline on 13 November 2026 at the 14th Congress of Financiers of Kazakhstan in Almaty, The Astana Times reported. The bonds would follow the central bank's first sale of tokenized short-term notes on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE), whose digital asset platform runs on Solana, four days earlier.
"We plan to issue tokenized government bonds jointly with the Ministry of Finance in the near future. This will probably take place in the first quarter of next year," Suleimenov said, according to The Astana Times.
National Bank of Kazakhstan's tokenized notes sold on KASE's Solana-based platform
The National Bank of Kazakhstan sold 10 billion tenge of 91-day notes in tokenized form at an auction on 9 November 2026, out of a 50 billion tenge issue, the bank said in its 10 November release. The tokenized notes were issued on KASE's digital financial assets platform, which KASE has built on Solana.
The National Bank's release does not name a blockchain. KASE has: in May it named the Solana Foundation as its partner "at the blockchain infrastructure level", and in October KASE chairman Adil Mukhamejanov described the exchange's tokenization model as one where "the Solana blockchain enables fast and cost-effective tokenization, and BitGo provides institutional custody". For this sale specifically, CoinDesk reported that KASE said its digital asset platform uses the Solana blockchain, with BitGo providing custody.
How the National Bank's 91-day tokenized notes auction worked
The 9 November auction offered one issue of notes in two forms at once: traditional notes and tokenized notes. Because both formats were the same security sold in the same auction, they cleared at one price, a weighted average yield of 15.72% a year, according to the National Bank's release. The bank put total demand at 70.2 billion tenge, 1.4 times the amount offered.
The Times of Central Asia reported that the bank accepted 48.1 billion tenge of bids, of which 9.6 billion tenge was in tokenized form. At its exchange rate, the 10 billion tenge tokenized tranche is worth about $22.3 million and the full issue about $111.7 million.
The notes settled and began circulating on 11 November 2026 and are due to be redeemed from 10 February 2027, according to The Times of Central Asia. The National Bank remains the issuer and is responsible for repaying holders. KASE runs the technology for issuing, placing and trading the tokens. Ownership is also recorded by the Central Securities Depository, and the KASE Clearing Centre clears and settles trades, so the token sits inside the same legal plumbing as a conventional note.
When KASE and the National Bank first presented the platform in June, Mukhamejanov said tokenizing the central bank's notes would mean settlement at T+0 and 24/7 operation. T+0 means a trade settles on the day it is agreed.
Kazakhstan's tokenized government bonds plan with the Ministry of Finance
The planned bonds are a different instrument from the notes. The notes are short-term liabilities of the central bank, while the bonds would be Ministry of Finance debt. Suleimenov said the two institutions would issue the tokenized bonds jointly, and gave "probably" the first quarter of 2027 as the timing. No size, maturity or platform has been announced.
CoinDesk reported that KASE's and BitGo's participation in the government bond issue has not been confirmed. Crypto Briefing likewise reported that Solana's and BitGo's roles in the bond sale are unconfirmed, and that Suleimenov plans to extend tokenization to real estate, precious metals and minerals.
Suleimenov framed tokenization as a way to widen access. "Tokenization transforms a financial asset into any type of asset. In this way, it democratizes access to finance and reduces its cost," he said, as quoted by The Astana Times.
KASE, digital financial assets law and Kazakhstan's Solana ties
Kazakhstan's law on digital financial assets took effect on 1 May 2026, and KASE became the country's first registered operator of both a digital financial assets platform and a digital asset trading platform, holding registration number 001. The first private issuance on the platform followed on 27 October 2026, according to The Astana Times, and the National Bank's notes came less than two weeks later.
The exchange has added Solana exposure elsewhere too. In June it listed the Volatility Shares Solana ETF under a regulatory sandbox, and the Solana Foundation signed a memorandum with Alatau City to build a blockchain hub there.
The central bank sale lands in the same week that DTCC said it plans to connect its tokenization service to Solana, with tokenized DTC assets expected in the second half of 2027. The two cases are at different stages: DTCC's link is a plan, while Kazakhstan's central bank has already put a slice of its own paper through a Solana-based exchange platform. In both, regulated securities move onto a public chain with depositories and clearing houses still in the loop.
What to watch before Kazakhstan's Q1 2027 bond issue
- The Ministry of Finance's announcement of the bond issue, with its size, maturity and date.
- Whether the bonds use KASE's Solana-based platform and BitGo custody, as the notes reportedly did.
- A published token address for the notes or the bonds, which would let anyone check supply and transfers on Solana.
- Further National Bank note auctions in tokenized form, and how large the tokenized share becomes.
For Solana, KASE's own description of the network's part is specific: fast and cost-effective tokenization, on a platform built to settle at T+0 and run around the clock. The National Bank's 91-day notes are the first central bank paper issued on that platform, and the Ministry of Finance's bonds would extend it to government debt if they take the same route.
