The chairman of Kazakhstan’s National Payment Corporation (NPC), Binur Zhalenov, has made the first transaction with the central bank digital currency (CBDC). During his speech at the XI Congress of Finance in Almaty on Nov. 15, he paid with a debit card tied to the CBDC account, according to local outlet, Kapital.kz. 

Zhalenov unveiled the official launch of the “digital tenge” on Kazakhstan’s retail market today, promising the “massive platform’s development” in 2024. According to the official, Kazakhstan collaborated with Visa and Mastercard, as well as the local banks, to integrate the CBDC into plastic cards:

“It lets you pay with a digital tenge from anywhere in the… Read more on Cointelegraph