Kazakhstan Launches Central Asia’s First Bitcoin ETF

On August 13, trading commenced on the Astana International Exchange (AIX) for Central Asia’s first spot Bitcoin ETF, under the ticker BETF. This was announced in a press release by the investment company Fonte Capital, which is behind the fund.

The issuance volume was 40,000 shares, with an initial price of $25 per security. In the first hours after launch, the BETF price peaked at 25.97. By the close of trading, the rate had fallen to 25.88.

Investors executed a total of 87 transactions amounting to $69,391.

BETF is fully backed by digital gold, stored with the American custodian BitGo. The company services the largest Bitcoin-based exchange-traded funds in the US, ensuring cold storage of assets and insurance coverage up to $250 million.

The new fund is registered in the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC). This eliminates dependency on foreign issuers and reduces the risk of fund blockage in the event of international sanctions.

BETF is supported by licensed AIFC participants, including Freedom Broker as a market maker, as well as Bybit Limited, ATAIX Eurasia Ltd, and BN KZ Technologies Limited (Binance).

Local Discussions

BitGo’s role as custodian has sparked mixed reactions. According to Shadi El Damati, co-founder of the human.tech platform, on one hand, it will provide instant investor trust, but on the other, it highlights dependence on global players.

“Ideally, countries should develop local custodians that meet international security standards. This way, you not only import financial infrastructure but create it within the country, providing the market with both sovereignty and resilience,” he told Cointelegraph.

Kazakh expert Bahrom Saidullayev agreed that in the long term, the country needs its own solutions on par with BitGo. However, for now, using a proven custodian is the quickest way to attract foreign capital.

Back in May, AIX, Solana Foundation, liquidity aggregator Jupiter, and licensed trading platform Intebix signed a memorandum of understanding. The aim of the collaboration was to develop a dual listing mechanism for companies going public.