Frequently Asked Questions

7 important rules for currency exchange in Kazakhstan:

1. Compare rates — use our website to find the best rate among banks and exchange offices
2. Avoid airports — rates at Almaty and Astana airports are 2-4% worse
3. Exchange at first-tier banks — Kaspi Bank, Halyk Bank, ForteBank offer the most honest rates
4. Check bills — counterfeits are rare but occur (especially $100 bills)
5. Read receipt before payment — some exchange offices indicate commission in fine print
6. For large amounts — better to exchange at bank branches, not exchange kiosks
7. Keep receipt — needed for return if counterfeits discovered

Best rates in Almaty: Dostyk district, Republic Square, Mega shopping center.

Yes, no problem! Kazakhstan is EAEU member, and ruble exchange is free.

Exchange options:

1. Directly — most banks and exchange offices exchange rubles for dollars directly. Bank fee (spread): 2-3%.
2. Through tenge — rubles → tenge → dollars. Double commission, not profitable.

Where the best ruble rate is:

• Kaspi Bank — you can see rate online in app
• Halyk Bank — one of the best rates in branches
• ForteBank — favorable rates for legal entities and when exchanging from $1000

Life-hack: Kaspi Gold allows online currency exchange at favorable rate, money arrives on card in one minute.

Yes, it makes a difference!

Before holidays (New Year, Nauryz, Kurban Ait) demand for dollars grows, banks worsen rate by 1-2%. Exchange currency 3-5 days before holidays.

January-February — traditionally weak period for tenge due to declining export revenues.

May-July — tenge usually strengthens thanks to grain and oil exports.

Tip: Watch oil prices. If Brent is above $80-85 per barrel — tenge strengthens, below $70 — weakens.

Not completely without losses, but can minimize:

Conversion on card:

• Kaspi Gold: conversion rate 0.5-1% worse than cash
• Halyk Bank: commission 1-2% when withdrawing in currency different from account

ATM withdrawal:

• Withdrawing dollars from multi-currency card — no commission (if you have dollar account)
• Withdrawing dollars from tenge card — conversion at bank rate + commission 1-2%

Tip: Keep dollars in separate dollar account at Kaspi or Halyk, then withdrawal is without conversion.

Best method: Transfer dollars to your dollar card, then withdraw at ATM — losses are minimal.

The Kazakh tenge exchange rate depends on several key factors:

• Oil prices — Kazakhstan exports 80+ million tons of oil per year. When oil prices fall, tenge weakens
• Ruble rate — Russia is the main trading partner. When ruble falls, tenge often follows
• NBRK decisions — the National Bank RK conducts interventions to stabilize the rate
• Inflation — current inflation in Kazakhstan is 9-11% per year
• EAEU — single market policy with Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan
• Gold and foreign exchange reserves — Kazakhstan has reserves of $35+ billion, which helps stabilize the rate

Forecast: NBRK aims to keep tenge in the corridor of 450-500 tenge per dollar.

The optimal strategy depends on your goals:

US dollars — classic option for protection against tenge devaluation. Dollar deposits: 1-3% per year at Kazakh banks.

Kazakh tenge — profitable at deposits with 13-16% interest per year. But inflation of 9-11% "eats up" a significant part of income. Real return: 2-7%.

Euro — alternative to dollar, rate has been more stable against tenge in recent years.

Russian rubles — risky option due to sanctions and high volatility.

Financial experts' advice: Keep savings in format 50% tenge (on deposit), 30% dollars, 20% euros.

This is the rate set by the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan (NBRK) every business day based on trading on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE).

Important: Commercial banks are NOT obligated to exchange at NBRK rate. They use it as a guide and add their margin.

Where to see official rate: nationalbank.kz (http://nationalbank.kz)

Typical difference:

• NBRK rate: 475 tenge per $1
• Bank purchase rate: 472 tenge
• Bank sale rate: 478 tenge
• Spread: 6 tenge (1.26%)

This is related to different purchasing power and economic conditions:

Reasons:

• Inflation — in Kazakhstan higher (9-11%) than in Russia (7-8%), which weakens tenge
• Trade balance — Kazakhstan imports more than Russia
• Oil dependence — Kazakhstan has less economic diversification
• EAEU — free capital movement equalizes rates, but not completely

Example (2025):

• 1 USD = 475 KZT (Kazakhstan)
• 1 USD = 92 RUB (Russia)
• By PPP (purchasing power parity) this is approximately equivalent

Conclusion: "Expensive" dollar in tenge is normal, important is purchasing power inside the country.

We update rates every 30-60 minutes during bank working hours (from 9:00 to 19:00 Almaty time).

Data sources:

• Official bank APIs (Kaspi, Halyk, Forte)
• Bank and exchange office websites
• KASE (Kazakhstan Stock Exchange)

On weekends and at night updates are less frequent — every 2-4 hours, as most exchange offices are closed.

Kaspi Bank — the only one changing rate 24/7, we track it in real time.

This is normal! Here are the main reasons:

• Different time — rate on website was updated an hour ago, but bank just changed rate
• Cash vs. non-cash — card rate (Kaspi Gold, Halyk) differs by 0.5-1.5% from cash rate
• Amount size — for exchanges from $5,000+ banks give individual rate
• Geography — rate in Almaty and Astana is better than in regions (difference up to 2-3 tenge)
• Customer type — VIP clients of banks get 0.5-1% better rate

If you see discrepancy more than 3-5 tenge — write to us, we'll check!

Yes! The website is fully optimized for smartphones and tablets.

TheMoney Kazakhstan mobile app:

• Push notifications on rate changes
• Integration with Kaspi.kz (http://Kaspi.kz) (show rate in app)
• Calculator with conversion of 50+ currencies
• Home screen widget
• Offline mode (last downloaded rates)
• Map of exchange offices near you

Download: Google Play, App Store, AppGallery (Huawei)

In mobile app:

1. Download TheMoney Kazakhstan
2. Settings → Push notifications → Enable
3. Select currencies (USD, EUR, RUB)
4. Set threshold: "notify if rate changed more than 5 tenge"

On website (beta):

• Email subscription for daily rate summary
• Telegram bot @TheMoney_kz_bot — sends rates on command /rates

Coming soon: SMS notifications when target rate reached.