Tokenization in Kazakhstan

The terms "tokens" and "tokenization" are gradually being integrated into the capital sector, including the Kazakh market. Entrepreneurs, experts in the field of blockchain technologies and the financial market seek to develop mechanisms for attracting investments, offering to tokenize current real assets and provide them to investors, clients, counterparties and other participants. In this article, we will try to consider the essence of the token from a legal point of view and assess the current state of legal regulation of digital assets in the Republic of Kazakhstan. To analyze the legal regulation of tokens in the Republic of Kazakhstan, it is necessary to study the main characteristics of tokens and the legal norms applied to them in various foreign jurisdictions. The first body to publish a definition of crypto assets was the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in October 2018, which, along with the Basel Committee, is one of the most important international bodies for combating money laundering and terrorist financing. According to the FATF definition, a digital asset is a virtual asset, which by definition is a digital expression of value, with which you can carry out digital trading and transfers, use for payment or investment purposes. Virtual assets do not include the digital expression of fiat currencies, securities, and other financial assets that are already covered by FATF Recommendations. In its report on crypto assets dated 09.01.2019, the European Banking Authority (EBA) expanded the concept of FATF to include an element of cryptography and the type of technology used, thereby defining a crypto asset for the first time. According to the EBA definition, crypto assets are "assets whose perceived or intrinsic value depends primarily on cryptography and distributed ledger technology or similar technologies that are not issued or guaranteed by a central bank or government agency and can be used as a medium of exchange and/or for investment purposes and/or for access to goods or services." services". The European Central Bank (ECB), on the other hand, has characterized crypto assets as "a new type of asset, recorded digitally and created using cryptography, which are not and do not represent the financial requirements or obligations of any identifiable organization."