Tether and Kazakhstan Central Bank Sign MoU to Study Tenge Stablecoin Pilot
Tether signed a memorandum of understanding with Kazakhstan's National Bank and Alatau City Authority to explore a tenge-pegged stablecoin and asset tokenization, though no launch date or blockchain has been set.
Why it matters
The MoU signals Kazakhstan's intent to build a regulated digital asset industry beyond bitcoin mining, which once accounted for roughly 18% of global hashrate. Tether's involvement brings the world's largest stablecoin issuer into a central bank sandbox environment that already has a tenge stablecoin pilot. The deal includes up to $60 million in planned tokenized projects in Alatau by year-end and follows Kazakhstan's allocation of up to $350 million for crypto-linked investments and a reported $700 million national crypto reserve.
Key facts
Tether signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Bank of Kazakhstan and Alatau City Authority on October 7, 2026
Reported by Crypto.News
The MoU covers studying a tenge-pegged stablecoin pilot and developing an asset tokenization framework
Reported by Crypto.News
No stablecoin has been approved, no blockchain selected, and no launch date set
Reported by Crypto.News
Kazakhstan already has a tenge stablecoin pilot called KZTE running in the National Bank's sandbox
Reported by Bitcoin.com News
The first tenge-backed stablecoin pilot launched in September 2025 with Intebix, Solana, and Mastercard partners
Reported by Crypto.News
Alatau City is targeting up to $60 million in tokenized projects before the end of 2026
60,000,000 USDReported by Bitcoin.com News
Kazakhstan's central bank earmarked up to $350 million for crypto-linked investments in March 2026 and officials said the national crypto reserve reached $700 million in September
350,000,000 USDReported by Decrypt
National Bank Deputy Governor Binur Zhalenov said the central bank will study international stablecoin issuance approaches while prioritizing financial stability, transaction transparency, and investor protection
Reported by Cointelegraph
What happened
On October 7, 2026, Tether announced it signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Bank of Kazakhstan and the Alatau City Authority to study a tenge-backed stablecoin pilot and develop an asset tokenization framework. The three parties will examine international stablecoin issuance models, identify potential use cases, and prepare a concept and pilot proposal. The agreement also covers workshops on reserve management, distributed ledger technology, and real-world asset tokenization, with a possible tokenization pilot in Alatau using Tether's Hadron platform. No stablecoin has been approved, no blockchain selected, and no commercial issuer named. Kazakhstan already operates a tenge stablecoin pilot called KZTE in the central bank's sandbox, launched in September 2025 with Intebix, Solana, and Mastercard. The National Bank's Deputy Governor Binur Zhalenov said the central bank will prioritize financial stability, transaction transparency, and investor protection while studying international approaches.
How the story developed
- Official statement
Government approves 65-measure plan to expand regulated digital asset market
Plan includes up to $60 million in tokenized projects
- First report
First report by Crypto News (CryptoNews.net)
Privacy Stablecoin CUSD Launches on Arbitrum, Transforming
- Independent corroboration
Independently corroborated by NewsBTC
WisdomTree Deploys Tokenized Real World Asset Funds Natively On Arbitrum
- Official statement
Tether signs MoU with Kazakhstan National Bank and Alatau City Authority
Parties agree to study tenge-pegged stablecoin pilot and asset tokenization framework
- Update
First tenge stablecoin pilot launched in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan launched its first tenge-backed stablecoin pilot with Intebix, Solana, and Mastercard partners
- Official statement
Official statement from Bitcoin.com News
Kazakhstan Taps Tether to Explore a New Tenge Stablecoin Model
- Official statement
Kazakhstan central bank earmarks $350 million for crypto-linked investments
National Bank of Kazakhstan allocated funds for crypto-linked investments
- Official statement
President Tokayev signs constitutional law on Alatau special legal regime
The law sets Alatau's own rules on digital assets, financial market, and customs
- Official statement
Kraken parent Payward receives in-principle approval to enter Kazakhstan
Exchange plans to offer trading, investment services, and custody after final authorization
How coverage built up
Independent sources over time, counted the way the consensus panel counts them: a republication of a wire story does not move the line.
- 30 Sept 2026, 19:38 UTC: Crypto News (CryptoNews.net) — 1 independent source, 1 reports
- 1 Oct 2026, 01:00 UTC: NewsBTC — 2 independent sources, 2 reports
- 3 Oct 2026, 22:54 UTC: Crypto News (CryptoNews.net) — 3 independent sources, 3 reports
- 6 Oct 2026, 13:00 UTC: Cointelegraph — 4 independent sources, 4 reports
- 6 Oct 2026, 13:02 UTC: CoinDesk — 5 independent sources, 5 reports
- 7 Oct 2026, 12:38 UTC: Crypto.News — 6 independent sources, 7 reports
- 7 Oct 2026, 13:00 UTC: Crypto News Flash — 7 independent sources, 8 reports
- 7 Oct 2026, 16:55 UTC: Bitcoin.com News, official — 8 independent sources, 10 reports
- 7 Oct 2026, 19:46 UTC: Decrypt — 9 independent sources, 11 reports
- 16 Oct 2026, 14:10 UTC: Blockchain.News — 10 independent sources, 22 reports
- 17 Oct 2026, 08:17 UTC: CoinGape — 11 independent sources, 23 reports
Affected entities
Also mentioned: Robinhood, Solana, USD Coin, Mastercard, United States, Circle, Ethereum
Original sources
Related events
Robinhood Chain daily transactions fall 42% as network evaluates Arbitrum priority ordering system
Robinhood Chain transactions dropped 42% from mid-September to early October while the network evaluates Arbitrum's Priority Gas Auctions for paid transaction prioritization.
Wazz links 53 Robinhood Chain token launches to one ring that took at least $18.43M
On-chain analyst Wazz says 53 Robinhood Chain token launches over about two months were tied to one ring that extracted at least $18.43 million from buyers.
Altcoin Index rises to 64 as revenue tokens lead gains; trader ties altseason to XRP
CoinMarketCap's Quarterly Altcoin Index rose to 64 from 48 as revenue tokens led 30-day gains, while trader Cryptollica said an altseason needs XRP.
Standard Chartered's Kendrick sets 2030 targets for Aave, Morpho, Uniswap, Arbitrum
Standard Chartered's Geoffrey Kendrick told Milk Road Crypto that Aave could reach $3,500 and Morpho $60 by 2030, and named Uniswap and Arbitrum alongside them, as Crypto News reported.