ALMATY (press release) — On 10 October 2018, Moscow Exchange (MOEX) and Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) signed a strategic partnership agreement. Under the agreement, MOEX is to acquire a 20% interest in KASE.

Chairman of National Bank of Kazakhstan Daniyar Akishev, Moscow Exchange CEO Alexander Afanasiev and Kazakhstan Stock Exchange CEO Alina Aldambergen took part in an official signing ceremony in Almaty last week.

The main aims of the partnership between the two exchanges are to:

• facilitate mutual access to their respective markets for professional market participants and investors;
• enhance infrastructure reliability and mitigate market risk through a more sophisticated central counterparty facility;
• deliver MOEX’s trading and clearing IT solutions to KASE’s markets with the aim of improving efficiency of on-exchange trading, clearing and risk management processes, as well as creating new exchange-traded instruments;
• support KASE’s intention to pursue a public offering and leverage MOEX’s experience to help KASE achieve a successful IPO.

Under the agreement, MOEX is to acquire a 20% interest in KASE.

Alexander Afanasiev, CEO of Moscow Exchange, said:

This strategic partnership between MOEX and KASE, the leading infrastructure companies of the two largest financial markets in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), represents an important step for development of the union. A more common regulatory and infrastructure framework of the financial markets of Russia and Kazakhstan will provide issuers with access to cost-effective capital raising opportunities and provide investors with a significantly wider choice of investment vehicles with lower costs and lower risks. Our shared history and shared economic background make us confident that MOEX’s successful track record of building its exchange infrastructure, boosting local and overseas demand and enhancing market liquidity will be useful for KASE and contribute to growth of Kazakhstan’s public market.

Alina Aldambergen, CEO of Kazakhstan Stock Exchange, said:

Cooperation between the two exchanges and use of MOEX’s trading and clearing facilities are major steps toward creation of mutual access to our exchange markets for professional participants. MOEX’s experience and knowledge as used for development of Kazakhstan’s financial market, specifically, on-exchange trading, risk management, clearing, trading member relations and enhancement of exchange services, will help improve market liquidity and compile a better offering for our clients and participants. On 1 October, KASE introduced a new service, the central counterparty (CCP), for trades on its FX market. It also plans, with support from Moscow Exchange, to introduce the CCP on its stock and money markets and expand the range of instruments and services. We are confident that our strategic partnership will strengthen the competitive positions and enhance growth prospects of both exchanges.

Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) is a leading trading venue in the Asia-Pacific Region. It is a multi-asset marketplace with a product offering including repo instruments, foreign currencies, government and corporate securities, international bonds and derivatives.

KASE is a member of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), the Federation of European and Asian Stock Exchanges (FEAS) and other international and domestic professional associations.

KASE is ranked second by volume of securities traded among exchanges in the CIS and sixth by equity market capitalization among the FEAS exchanges.

Moscow Exchange Group operates Russia’s main trading platform for equities, bonds, derivative instruments, currencies, money market instruments, precious metals and agricultural products. The Group includes Russia’s central securities depository (National Settlement Depository), and National Clearing Centre, performing the functions of central counterparty on the markets, which allows Moscow Exchange to offer its clients the full spectrum of trading and post-trading services.

Moscow Exchange ranks among the world’s top 25 exchanges by total volume of equities traded, and among the five largest exchanges for bond and derivative trading. Securities of 664 Russian companies, including the country’s largest companies by market capitalization, were traded on MOEX as of 1 April 2018.