Tether has signed an agreement with Kazakhstan’s central bank and Alatau City Authority to explore a tenge-backed stablecoin, asset tokenization and decentralized finance.
Summary
- Tether has signed an MoU with Kazakhstan authorities to study a tenge-pegged stablecoin pilot proposal.
- Kazakhstan’s National Bank already regulates stablecoins and tokenized real assets under rules effective May 2026.
- Alatau City could host a tokenization pilot using Hadron, Tether’s asset issuance and management platform.
- The agreement includes workshops on reserve management, distributed ledgers, stablecoins, and real-world asset tokenization models.
- Kazakhstan launched its first tenge-backed stablecoin pilot in September 2025 with Intebix, Solana, Mastercard partners.
Tether announced the memorandum of understanding on Oct. 7 with the National Bank of Kazakhstan and Alatau City Authority. The parties will prepare a concept and pilot proposal for a stablecoin pegged to Kazakhstan’s national currency.
The MoU does not mean a new stablecoin has been approved or launched. No issuance date, blockchain, reserve structure or commercial issuer has been announced for the proposed token.
Tether and Kazakhstan will study a tenge stablecoin
Under the agreement, Tether and the National Bank will examine stablecoin issuance models used in other markets and identify possible use cases in Kazakhstan. The work will include designing infrastructure required for digital finance and preparing a proposed tenge stablecoin pilot.
Kazakhstan already has a legal framework covering this type of product. The National Bank introduced comprehensive digital asset rules on May 1, 2026. The framework recognizes money-backed stablecoins, tokenized real assets and digital versions of traditional financial instruments as digital financial assets.
Outside the Astana International Financial Centre, the National Bank licenses and supervises providers dealing with unsecured digital assets. Kazakhstan’s financial-market regulator oversees other digital financial assets, while the AIFC continues to operate under its separate legal regime.
The latest Tether proposal therefore enters a market where stablecoins are already being tested. Kazakhstan’s National Bank launched its first tenge-denominated stablecoin pilot in September 2025 through its regulatory sandbox.
Intebix issued that pilot token with Solana, Mastercard and Eurasian Bank. The National Bank said the project was intended to connect digital assets with existing financial infrastructure, including crypto-fiat conversions and crypto-card transactions.
As crypto.news previously reported, the stablecoin is known as Evo, or KZTE, and operates on Solana. The new Tether agreement does not state whether the proposed pilot would replace, expand or operate separately from that existing project.
Alatau City could host the tokenization pilot
Asset tokenization forms the second major part of the Oct. 7 agreement. Tether, the National Bank and Alatau City Authority plan to identify asset categories suitable for tokenization and build a model for issuing them digitally.
The agreement states that the parties may use Hadron by Tether for the project. A pilot would be conducted within Alatau City’s jurisdiction, although no launch date or asset class has been selected.
Hadron is Tether’s platform for creating and managing tokenized assets. Tether describes the system as supporting assets including bonds, equities, stablecoins, funds and commodity-backed tokens through their issuance and management lifecycle.
Tether has used Hadron in other institutional projects. In August, the company announced a collaboration with First Data and BKN301 focused on tokenizing institutional real estate assets in Saudi Arabia.
The company signed a separate agreement with the Nairobi Securities Exchange in July to study tokenized securities and blockchain infrastructure. In related crypto.news coverage, the parties had not yet identified which securities would be tokenized or which blockchain would host them.
Kazakhstan already has rules for tokenized assets
Kazakhstan’s policy work on tokenization predates the Tether agreement. The National Bank says its current rules recognize stablecoins, tokenized physical assets and traditional financial instruments issued in digital form.
Regulatory requirements cover infrastructure, capital, risk management, compliance and anti-money-laundering controls for covered digital asset providers.
The country’s July digital asset policy went further. The National Bank outlined plans to test stablecoins in cross-border payments and money transfers while developing tokenized government bond projects.
Authorities said they would develop regulatory approaches to DeFi and give specific attention to Alatau City’s digital infrastructure. Interaction with the Astana International Financial Centre forms another part of that policy.
Alatau gained a special position in Kazakhstan’s economic framework earlier this year. A government statement confirmed that constitutional changes effective July 1 created a framework for accelerated-development cities, with Alatau becoming the first area to use the model.
The city is being developed under a special legal regime focused on investment, technology and new economic models. Kazakhstan’s National Bank has previously presented Alatau to international investors as a testing site for digital finance and tokenization.
MoU does not yet create a new stablecoin
The Oct. 7 agreement remains an exploratory memorandum. Tether and Kazakhstan have committed to studying models, preparing proposals and running pilots, but neither party has announced final terms for a tenge-backed token.
The parties will conduct workshops and training sessions covering stablecoin markets, reserve management, distributed ledger technology and real-world asset tokenization.
National Bank Deputy Governor Binur Zhalenov said the regulator intends to study international stablecoin and tokenization practices while keeping “financial stability, transaction transparency, and robust investor protection” as priorities.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said Kazakhstan was exploring tokenization and a strategic reserve framework as digital assets moved toward “sovereign-level financial infrastructure.” His statement describes Tether’s view of the collaboration and does not confirm that Kazakhstan has adopted a Tether-backed reserve plan.
Kazakhstan has separately been expanding oversight of cryptocurrency activity. As crypto.news reported in September, the National Bank plans to create a National Cryptocurrency Analytics Center capable of monitoring crypto transactions, fiat payments, wallets and customer information.
The central bank already operates a regulatory sandbox for digital financial assets. Its framework allows pilots involving stablecoins, tokenized bonds, shares and other financial instruments before full commercial deployment.
