Kazakhstan explains Coinbase blockage

The Coinbase cryptocurrency exchange website has stopped loading without a VPN since mid-September in Kazakhstan. Only now has the Ministry of Culture and Information officially confirmed the blocking of the resource in a comment to local media.

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The agency cited the law ‘On Digital Assets’, which bans the trading of cryptocurrencies on platforms without a license from the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA).

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The request to restrict access to Coinbase was submitted by the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry.

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Also since September, the Kraken exchange’s site does not load without a VPN.

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As of the time AFSA granted permission to operate in Kazakhstan, issued six exchanges: Binance, Biteeu Eurasia (Intebix), ATAIX, Upbit, Xignal&MT and Bybit. All of them operate within the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC).

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Earlier in Kazakhstan, the sites of the crypto-friendly online broker Interactive Brokers and the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) were blocked. However, after public outcry, access to them was restored in full, noted by the media.

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Meanwhile, NYMEX continues to trade Bitcoin and Ethereum futures in the absence of an AFSA license. The Ministry of Information did not explain the reasons for restoring access to the commodity exchange.

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In January 2023, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the law ‘On Digital Assets’.

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Since June 2022, the Astana International Financial Centre has hosted a pilot project for creating and developing Bitcoin exchanges.

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In June, the authorities proposed tightening the requirements for crypto companies.