Kazakhstan Recovered 824.4 Million Dollars Worth of Assets Stolen through Illicit Withdrawals in 2024
In the year 2024, Kazakhstan made significant strides in its asset recovery and economic development efforts. A total of 565 investors, whose combined contribution to the economy reached an impressive ten trillion tenge ($19.2 billion), received support from the government.
The country also signed nine treaties on crime prevention and asset recovery with four international partners: Morocco, Peru, Qatar, and Cyprus. These treaties marked a commitment to strengthening international cooperation in combating crime and recovering ill-gotten assets.
One of the notable achievements was the decrease in the overall crime rate, which dropped by 5.3% from 140,000 to 132,000 offenses. Incidents of torture also saw a significant decrease, with a 54% reduction, from 424 to 194 cases in 2024.
In accordance with international practices, Kazakhstan introduced judicial proceedings to recover unexplained assets, securing $10 million through court decisions. However, efforts to recover corrupt assets from abroad faced challenges and delays, with no successful recovery and return of assets abroad through criminal confiscation despite Kazakhstan’s legal framework allowing confiscation prior to verdicts.
On the economic front, Kazakhstan made progress in digitalizing its trade processes. The digitization of trade certificates helped reduce shadow economy activities by about 20 billion tenge (roughly USD 40 million) in 2024. This move towards transparency and improved verification processes supports broader economic formalization and can be linked to reducing corruption and illicit economic activities domestically.
The banking sector also showed positive indicators of trust and growth, with ForteBank's strong financial performance and active adoption of AI for fraud detection and credit risk mitigation in 2024. This suggests that improving institutional capacity may contribute to reducing financial crimes.
In addition, 67 individuals were extradited to Kazakhstan from various countries, and 4.6 billion tenge ($8.8 million) in alimony was collected for 23,000 children. Under agreements with the law's subjects, 15 social and investment projects worth more than 48 billion tenge ($92.3 million) were launched. The constitutional rights of 3.5 million citizens were also protected.
In summary, while Kazakhstan’s asset recovery efforts in 2024 had more measurable impacts on economic formalization domestically, international asset recovery remains challenging. The implications for crime rates need further data to precisely assess. However, the country's progress in digitalization, banking sector improvements, and extradition of criminals indicate a commitment to combating economic crime and improving the overall economic landscape.
- The commitment to strengthening international cooperation in combating crime and recovering ill-gotten assets was evident as Kazakhstan signed nine treaties on crime prevention and asset recovery with four international partners, including Morocco, Peru, Qatar, and Cyprus, in the general-news sector.
- On the business front, efforts to recover corrupt assets from abroad faced challenges and delays, with no successful recovery and return of assets abroad through criminal confiscation despite Kazakhstan’s legal framework allowing confiscation prior to verdicts, which highlights the need for further advancements in the finance sector.
