AIX trading volume in 2021 was more than 5 times higher than in 2020

Astana International Exchange (“AIX”, “Exchange”) is pleased to present its results for 2021. The monthly trading volume in December 2021 increased significantly and reached 13.9 million US dollars compared to 9.3 million US dollars in the previous year. As a whole, the trading turnover in 2021 increased by more than 5 times compared to 2020.

AIX CEO Renat Bekturov noted:

“In November 2021, three years have passed since the launch of trading on Astana International Exchange. Even though more than half of this time was at the height of the pandemic and the crisis in the global stock markets, we managed to achieve impressive success. The volume of transactions increased more than fivefold, the number of securities exceeds 130, and the number of accounts of retail investors has reached 160 thousand. AIX sets ambitious plans for 2022, which will bring the exchange to a new level of development and contribute to further improvement of the investment landscape of Kazakhstan.”

AIX results as of 31 December 2021:

• The official AIX list includes 131 issues of securities of 84 different issuers, including 2 exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and 16 exchange-traded notes (ETNs).
• Debt capital raised amounted to about $1.27 billion, and of equity capital equaled $321 million.
• Total equity market capitalization of companies listed on AIX (Kazatomprom, Polymetal, Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan, Ferro Alloy Resources Limited, Kcell, Bank CenterCredit, Kaspi.kz) exceeded $48 billion.
• 29 trading members, including brokers from Kazakhstan, Russia, China and European countries.
• More than 160 thousand investor accounts in the AIX Central Depository

Major placements on AIX in 2021:

• The debut placement of five-year Eurobonds of National Wealth Fund Samruk-Kazyna JSC with a total volume of $500 million on AIX, the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange.
• Cross-listing of bonds of NC KazMunayGas JSC listed on the London Stock Exchange for a total amount of $6.25 billion;
• Issue of bonds of the Eurasian Development Bank for the amount of $ 100 million and the debut issue of social bonds for the amount of 20 billion tenge;
• The debut placement of green bonds of Samruk-Energy JSC for the amount of 18.4 billion tenge.
• Three bond placements of the subsidiary of BI Group construction holding – Megastroy LLP for a total amount of 15.9 billion tenge.

In October 2021, the Kaspi.kz Holding’s ordinary shares were included in the official AIX list. The total number of Kaspi.kz shares admitted to trading is 192.1 million out of 199.5 million. Thus, up to 96% of the fintech holding’s outstanding ordinary shares are traded on AIX.

In July 2021, AIX launched the AIX Qazaq Index (AIXQI), which measures the performance of shares of companies whose business is connected with Kazakhstan and is a weighted index by market capitalization. The index includes shares and global depositary receipts of eight Kazakhstani companies traded on AIX, the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange.

Retail investors

In 2021, there was a significant increase in activity of retail investors in Kazakhstan. If at the end of 2020 there were 98 thousand accounts of investors in the Central Securities Depository AIX (AIX CSD), by the end of 2021 this number had reached more than 160 thousand accounts.

Launching Tabys mobile app, through which Kazakhstan citizens can invest in exchange notes, also contributed to the growth of the activity of retail investors on AIX. The volume of investments in Tabys at the end of December 2021 amounted to more than $ 2.6 million, and the trading volume over the past 12 months amounted to $ 4,8 million. Tabys app has been downloaded 145 thousand times. More than 15 thousand accounts for individuals in AIX Registrar has been opened in the app for storing exchange notes, 5 thousand of which are Tabys active users.

New tools and services

• In December 2021, trading in iX Bitcoin Exchange Traded Notes (ETNs was launched, whose underlying assets are shares of the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO), one of the largest funds tracking the dynamics of bitcoin futures. This is the first exchange-traded instrument linked to cryptocurrency in Central Asia.
• In May 2021, iX NASDAQ 100 Equities ETNs were issued that track the dynamics of the NASDAQ 100 index, which includes securities of US technology companies.
• In cooperation with Halyk Finance, two ETNs linked to the AIXQI index were listed on AIX: an ETN with a passive investment approach, investing in Kazakh shares in the proportions determined by the AIXQI index and an actively managed ETN designed to outperform the dynamics of AIXQI.
• Also, together with Freedom Finance, the Freedom Finance IUIF Fixed Income USD exchange note was listed, linked to the profitability indicators of the local interval mutual investment fund “Fixed Income USD”.
• In cooperation with BCC Invest, Kaz Financials exchange note was issued, linked to the performance of shares of Kazakhstani banks – Bank CenterCredit JSC, Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan JSC and Kaspi Bank JSC.

AIX is one of the few frontier market exchanges offering securities lending services to its market makers to cover short positions within a reliable operating environment and risk management system. The volume of transactions under the AIX securities lending program since the launch of the service in 2020 amounted to $730 thousand or 1,167 thousand securities in 9 different names.

Since December 2021, companies that have not previously had their ordinary shares traded publicly, but that have sold ordinary shares in a private placement, may list their ordinary shares on the AIX via ‘direct listing’ for the purpose of allowing existing shareholders to sell their shares. Direct listing is the process of entering the public market without attracting new equity and without conducting a traditional initial public offering (IPO). Unlike an IPO, when the issuer sells shares to potential investors, usually at a certain discount by collecting an order book, with a direct listing, initial sales are made by existing shareholders through the Exchange in the trading mode, and prices are determined based on the coincidence of purchase and sale orders in accordance with the AIX Trading Rules.

International cooperation

In 2021, AIX was accepted as a full member of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), a global industry association of exchanges and clearing centers, which unites more than 250 market infrastructure participants, including 68 exchanges — full members of the WFE. This membership is another recognition of AIX as a market that meets the highest standards of the world’s leading exchanges and plays an important role in the development of an innovative and dynamic local capital market.

Reference:

AIX was formed in 2017 within the Astana International Financial Centre development framework. AIX shareholders are AIFC, Goldman Sachs, the Shanghai stock exchange, the silk Road Fund, and NASDAQ, which also provides the AIX trading platform. The Exchange operates within a regulatory environment based on the principles of English Law, thus providing a reliable investment environment. The mission of AIX is to develop an active capital market in Kazakhstan and the region by providing clear and favorable conditions for attracting financing to private and public businesses. AIX develops special segments for mining companies as well as infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road initiative. More details: www.aix.kz.

AIFC – the Astana International Financial Centre was established on the initiative of the First President of the Republic of Kazakhstan – Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev as part of the National Plan “100 steps to implement five institutional reforms”.

On July 2, 2020, as part of the meeting of the AIFC Management Council, the Center’s Development Strategy was adopted until 2025.

According to it, the vision of the AIFC is to become a leading international financial centre in the region, including Central Asia, the Caucasus, the EAEU countries, Western China, Mongolia and Eastern Europe.

The mission of AIFC is to promote the sustainable long-term development of the region. As the Head of State noted, K.Tokayev, “The AIFC with its unique capabilities can act as a universal platform connecting the countries of the region.” https://aifc.kz/