Timeline of events

January

On January 9 the Exchange hosted an event called “The Issuer Day” during which Kcell’s executives met with institutional investors and professional participants of the securities market.

On January 24 representatives of the Exchange took part in a round table arranged by International Finance Corporation World Bank Group with support from UN Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative (SSE Initiative) and London Stock Exchange Group that was held in London. The event was dedicated to issues of information disclosure, ensuring transparency and dissemination of ESG practices for companies on emerging markets.

February

On February 8 representatives of the Exchange gave speeches during a business forum themed “Exchanges of the CIS: instruments, services and technologies” that took place in Dushanbe (the Republic of Tajikistan).

An award ceremony was held on February 14 to honor members of the Exchange, listed companies and media representatives that stood out in 2018. Winners in various nominations were as follows: Freedom Finance, BCC Invest — subsidiary organization of Bank CenterCredit, Halyk Savings Bank of Kazakhstan, Kazkommerts Securities (subsidiary organization of Kazkommertsbank), Subsidiary organization of Halyk Savings Bank of Kazakhstan “Halyk Finance”, ATFBank, KazMunaiGas Exploration Production, KAZ Minerals PLС. Among the media representatives there were periodicals and information resources, such as Kursiv newspaper, forbes.kz website, “LS TV” agency.

On February 15 representatives of the Exchange took part in the anniversary inter-university research and practice conference of young scientists and business leaders: “Science and business: mechanisms and priorities of innovative development” at the University of International Business.

On 21 February a seminar called “How to trade on the securities market” was conducted for lecturers of finance and economics departments of universities.

On 27-28 February representatives of the Exchange took part in the XIII World exchange congress in Muscat (Sultanate Oman), where participants discussed future prospects of the exchange business, new technologies on exchange markets, changes in accounting systems of depositories and possibilities of diversification of exchange services.

On 27 February representatives of the Exchange took part in the annual conference “Bonds, loans and derivatives of Russia and the CIS” (Moscow), during which the participants discussed prospects of the debt capital market of Russia and the CIS.

March

On March 1–2 the 77th meeting of FEAS Working committee and the annual General Assembly of FEAS took place. Participants of the events discussed a series of internal regulation documents, future prospects of FEAS and lines of cooperation between FEAS members. Representatives of the Exchange presented KASE’s initiatives and projects.

On March 2 KASE with support from the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs “Atameken” conducted a round table themed “Opportunities of raising funding on Kazakhstan Stock Exchange” with the business community of East Kazakhstan region.

On March 5 a seminar called “Introducing Islamic financing in the Republic of Kazakhstan” was held in Almaty in association with the “Damu” fund.

An opening ceremony for securities trading called “Ring the Bell for Gender Equality” was held On March 7. This event is associated with the International Women’s Day March 8 and conducted annually for purposes of promoting UN ideas of sustainable development that include aspiring for gender equality.

On March 15 there was a round table themed “Information disclosure in accordance with ESG criteria” as part of the UN initiative “Sustainable stock exchanges” attended by speakers from International Finance Corporation World Bank Group, EY and the Exchange.

On March 16 KASE held a training seminar for students of finance and economics universities themed “How to trade on the securities market”. Representatives of the Exchange and brokerage firms held speeches.

A seminar called “Essentials of the stock market” was held on March 29 at the Corporate university “Samruk-Kazyna” in Astana. Representatives of the Exchange and brokerage firms held speeches.

On March 29 the Exchange launched a cycle of open lectures called KASE Talks, associated with KASE’s 25th anniversary and devoted to issues of development of Kazakhstan’s financial market.

On March 29 a round table was held for members of the Exchange, custodian banks, the Central Depository. The participants discussed issues related to interaction of brokerage companies with custodian banks, the Central Depository when carrying out transactions in securities.

On March 30 KASE held a training seminar for treasury employees of National managing holding “Baiterek” (hereinafter — NMH “Baiterek”) and its subsidiaries themed “Stock market instruments for efficient management of the company’s capital”.

April

On April 4 at the Corporate university “Samruk-Kazyna” in Astana a representative of the Exchange delivered speeches as part of the general certification of corporate secretaries on the following subjects: “Listing on the Exchange: main requirements” and “Status of the listed company: information disclosure and ensuring the transparency of the company’s operations”.

On April 9 the Exchange opened the KASE Startup platform, designed for establishing communication between investors, start-ups and other companies interested in funding.

From April 9 trading in new financial instruments was opened: currency swap transactions involving currency pairs CNY/KZT and RUB/KZT and Russian ruble with settlements Т+2 in tenge (RUBKZT_SPT).

On April 9 representatives of the Exchange in association with the Republican chamber of entrepreneurship (RCE) of Atyrau region held a round table in Atyrau for the local business community. Information on instruments of funding through the stock market was presented during the meeting.

On April 11 at the international fair called “Global Oil & Gas Atyrau 2018” in Atyrau, representatives of the Exchange gave speeches at a panel session and made a presentation themed “Kazakhstan Stock Exchange — a fundraising platform”.

On April 17 the Exchange hosted an event called “The Issuer Day”, during which executives of KEGOC met with institutional investors and shareholders of the company. KEGOC executives discussed with the event participants their current projects, operational and financial results.

On April 19 in Astana, during the ninth geological-mining forum MINEX, representatives of the Exchange gave speeches at a panel session devoted to issues of risk assessment and prospects of attracting investments in new subsurface use facilities, implementation of modern ESG standards in the mining industry, introduction of “smart” technologies to ensure a good quality growth of the industry.

On April 19–20 representatives of the Exchange delivered speeches on the subject “Kazakh corporate bonds market: steps into the future” at the VII “Cbonds Emerging Markets Bond Conference”.

On April 20 the Exchange conducted another event called “The Issuer Day” for Development Bank of Kazakhstan whose executives met with investors and professional participants of the securities market as part of issue on the Exchange of the Bank’s Eurobonds denominated in the national currency.

From April 22 amendments to the Rules of execution of brokerage and dealing activities on the securities market enabling brokerage firms to participate in the trading on the currency market came into effect.

On April 24 representatives of the Exchange took part in the international fair “Mining Week Kazakhstan” in Karagandy giving a speech in the section devoted to issues of fundraising and investment opportunities for entrepreneurs on the stock market.

On April 26 a seminar called “Essentials of the stock market” was conducted on a platform of the “Damu” Fund in Almaty. Representatives of the Exchange and brokerage firms delivered speeches.

May

On May 17 the XI Astana economic forum called “Global Challenges Summit” took place, during which representatives of the Exchange participated in panel discussions devoted to improving the stability of the business sector and reaching a sustainable economic growth.

On May 24 a seminar themed “Fundamentals of interaction with investors and other interested parties (IR)” was held in Almaty. Speakers were from the information analytical agency Refinitiv, International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group, international IR-agency “Global PR & IR Advisory EM”, local company “PG Communications” LLP and the Exchange.

On May 25 in association with the “PG Communications” LLP and international IR-agency “Global PR & IR Advisory EM” a round table themed “Actual issues: the role and place of PR and IR in the company management system” was held in Almaty.

On May 25 the Exchange conducted a round table with insurance companies on issues of investing on the local stock market. Participants of the event discussed issues of increasing the investing activity of insurance companies, existing barriers for active operations of insurance companies and defining definitive measures for activating insurance companies’ participation in the stock market.

On May 28–30 an acquaintance meeting with professional participants of the securities market of the Republic of Uzbekistan was held in Tashkent (Uzbekistan). The Exchange’s delegation met with representatives of the Republican stock exchange “Toshkent”, the Central Depository of Uzbekistan and professional participants of Uzbekistan’s securities market. Participants discussed upcoming changes in laws regulating the securities market, listing procedures and potential cooperation possibilities.

On May 31 in Astana representatives of the Exchange took part in the XV Bond congress of the CIS and Baltic states, delivering speeches in the panel session themed “Regulation and infrastructure of financial markets of the Republic of Kazakhstan”.

June

On June 1 a round table on the stock market and corporate governance was conducted on the Exchange’s premises for representatives of Kazakhstan’s medical institutions.

On June 6 representatives of the Exchange gave speeches during the general certification of corporate secretaries at the Corporate university “Samruk-Kazyna” in Astana on the following subjects: “Listing on the Exchange: main requirements” and “Status of the listed company: information disclosure and ensuring the transparency of the company’s operations”.

From June 15 KASE operates KASE Private Market, designed for provision of SME with alternative funding sources without the need to obtain the status of a public company.

On June 19 representatives of the Exchange took part in “Astana Mining & Metallurgy — AMM 2018” forum, giving speeches on the following subjects: “Fundraising opportunities for the mining industry on the Exchange’s capital markets” and “The Exchange practice in promoting sustainable development”.

On June 21 a presentation of “KASE Startup” was held in AstanaHub — an international technological park of IT-startups in Astana.

On June 28 a training seminar for private investors themed “How to trade on the securities market” was held on the Exchange’s premises. Speakers were from the Exchange and brokerage companies.

On June 28 a round table themed “KASE instruments for intra-group funding” was conducted jointly with NMH “Baiterek” in Astana“.

On June 20–21 the “World Mining Congress” was held in Astana. Representatives of the Exchange took part in two sessions: “Global business — raising capital for funding mining enterprises” and “Sustainable development — impact of the sustainable development on the financial stability and taking account of risks”.

On June 28 a conference called “Investment Opportunities in Kazakhstan” was held in London (Great Britain). At the conference participants discussed the development of Kazakhstan’s monetary policy, existing trends on Kazakhstan’s exchange markets, the current situation on Kazakhstan’s government securities market, as well as investment opportunities for foreign companies on the stock market.

July

On July 11 and 14 in Almaty representatives of the Exchange took part in the training program called “Professionalize Kazakhstan” (“K-pro3”), delivering lectures on subjects “Diversity” and “Capitalization — indicator of the business efficiency”.

On July 11 the Exchange hosted a round table for brokerage companies devoted to issues of development of the stock market, implementation of the coupon rate subsidizing mechanism for bonds, settlement of Eurobonds in US dollars. The Exchange informed participants about implemented projects and strategic directions of the Exchange’s development.

On July 23 the Exchange and Legal persons union “Kazakhstan’s association of oil and gas and energy sector companies “KAZENERGY” concluded a memorandum on mutual cooperation, aimed at interaction of the Exchange and Association as part of generation of proposals on attracting local and foreign companies as issuers and investors, including companies—members of the Association, to Kazakhstan’s stock market.

September

Starting from September 10 the Exchange uses the weighted average KZT/USD market rate with settlements on the next business day (Т+1) — USDKZT_TOM — as the exchange rate fixing instrument. The purpose of the innovation is creation of a more representative indicator on the foreign currency market in conditions of the free floating tenge exchange rate.

On September 12 the Exchange and information-analytical agency “Bloomberg” conducted a joint meeting of the round table “Bloomberg Day on KASE” in order to introduce the audience to modern trends in the field of interaction with investors and other interested parties, as well as to instruments for improving the investment attractiveness of the company.

An international conference called “The capital market of the Republic of Uzbekistan” arranged by the international agency “Cbonds Congress” was held on September 13 in Tashkent (Republic of Uzbekistan). A representative of the Exchange gave a speech on the subject “Investment opportunities of the region and prospects of inter-country cooperation”.

On September 14 KASE and the Republican stock exchange “Toshkent” concluded a memorandum on mutual cooperation that is aimed at deepening the cooperation of both exchanges as part of increasing the efficiency and competitiveness of national stock markets.

From September 17 to October 17, an educational project “Exchange Simulator” was conducted for students of economics and other universities wishing to broaden their professional knowledge within their academic course, as well as to let them acquire practical skills on the stock market.

On September 17 KASE launched the trading in listed Eurobonds settled in US dollars according to scheme Т+2.

On September 18 KASE representatives took part in the annual international conference of S&P Global “The economy and the banking sector of Kazakhstan” in Almaty, giving a speech on “Current trends of Kazakhstan’s exchange market”.

On September 18, in the run-up to its 25th anniversary, KASE launched an online project named “KASE: History in persons”, featuring memories of persons who played an important role in the development of the Kazakh financial market and KASE. A total of 39 publications were released under the project.

On September 20 a seminar called “Essentials of the corporate governance” was conducted in Almaty. Representatives of International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group, “Governance & Management Consulting” LLP and the Exchange gave speeches.

On September 25 the “Issuer Day” was held on the Exchange for KEGOC, where the company reported its H1 2018 results, and shared its strategic development plans.

On September 26 a representative of the Exchange gave speeches at the Corporate university “Samruk-Kazyna” in Astana as part of the general certification of corporate secretaries on the following subjects: “Listing on the Exchange: main requirements” and “Status of the listed company: information disclosure and ensuring the transparency of the company’s operations”.

On September 28 a training seminar for retail investors themed “How to trade on the securities market” was held on the Exchange’s premises. Speakers were from the Exchange and brokerage companies. The training program featured an interactive game called “Financial degustation”.

October

From October 1 KASE started acting as the Central counteragent on the foreign currency market.

On October 2 guest lectures were organized for students of the “Alma-U” university as part of the event called “The Exchange Day at Alma-U”.

On October 2–4 representatives of the Exchange took part in the 58th General Assembly and Annual meeting of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) in Athens (Greece). Participants of the events discussed issues of development of the exchange business and new challenges influencing the market infrastructure, as well as issues of sustainable development.

On October 10 the Exchange and MOEX signed a strategic cooperation agreement which provides for acquisition by Moscow Exchange of up to 20% of outstanding KASE shares and implementation of MOEX trading and clearing systems on KASE markets.

On October 12 at the second regional investment forum “KostanayInvest 2018” in Kostanay representatives of the Exchange gave speeches during the panel session on the topic of “Kazakhstan Stock Exchange — fundraising platform”.

On October 25 a business breakfast “KASE day in Aktau” was arranged in Aktau, attended by executives of major regional companies, SME representatives and partners of the Exchange as part of promotion of the Exchange’s products and services for potential issuers.

On October 25 a round table themed “Preparation of the public report on deposits of mineral resources or oil and gas” was held with participation of speakers from the Association KAZRC, SRK Consulting, the Exchange and representatives of subsoil user companies.

On October 28 representatives of the Exchange took part in the annual FEAS meeting in Abu-Dhabi (UAE) that hosted an annual meeting of the General Assembly, Work committee and Auditing committee.

For the first time as part of the annual meeting of FEAS members, a conference “ConFEAS 2018” on the subject of “The augmented reality of trading and settlement ecosystems” was held on October 29–30. Participants discussed issues of implementing MiFid II, issues of supporting regulators in the developing of capital markets, cross-border relations on securities trading and the future of financial technologies (Fintech).

November

A competition was conducted among retail investors on the equity market from November 1 to December 14. More than 200 retail investors took part in the competition. During the competition participants concluded 2,588 transactions in the amount of more than KZT 256 mln, with the best yield making 13.7% APR.

On November 1 in Almaty representatives of the Exchange took part in the training program “Instruments of the capital market”, organized by EBRD for SME consultants, giving a lecture themed “Kazakhstan Stock Exchange — a platform for attracting investments”.

Kazakhstan Exchange Forum “Roles of stock exchanges in the economy’s sustainable development” was conducted on November 16 in Almaty as part of the VIII Congress of financiers, organized by the Exchange and Kazakhstan’s National Bank in association with ULE “Association of Kazakhstan’s Financiers”.

On 23 November the Exchange hosted “The Issuer Day” during which executives of KazAgroFinance met with institutional investors and professional participants of the securities market on occasion of the proposed additional offering of commercial bonds. During the meeting KazAgroFinance’s executives reported financial results and current projects of the company, as well as parameters of the upcoming additional offering of commercial bonds.

On November 27 a seminar called “Essentials of the stock market” was conducted on the premises of the “Damu” fund in Almaty. The speakers were from the Exchange and brokerage companies.

On November 29 in Almaty representatives of the Exchange participated in a round table on gender equality issues themed “New look at boards with female directors” arranged by “Governance & Management Consulting” LLP and International Finance Corporation World Bank Group. The Exchange gave a speech called “Role of stock exchanges in promoting the gender equality”.

December

From December 4 GS market’s instruments were switched to the Т+2 settlement scheme.

On December 6 a seminar called “Foundations of Investor Relations” was held on the premises of the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of the Republic of Kazakhstan “Atameken”. Speakers were represented by “Ernst & Young Advisory” LLP, S&P Global Ratings, “KEGOC” JSC and “KazTransOil” JSC, and the Exchange.

A business breakfast themed “KASE Day in Astana” on the occasion of the Exchange’s 25th anniversary was held in Astana on December 7.

On December 7 representatives of the Exchange took part in the regional investment forum “Aktobe-Invest 2018” in Aktobe, delivering a lecture called “KASE — a fundraising platform”.

From December 14 KASE operates trading in shares of the segregated sub-fund FinEx FFIN Kazakhstan Equity ETF, issued by the alternative investment fund FinEx Physically Backed Funds Plc (Ireland). Earlier, in October trading in shares of the exchange investment fund on KASE Index was launched on Moscow Exchange.

On December 21 the Exchange conducted a round table on issues of development of the national stock market for brokerage companies. During the event the Exchange reported on implemented projects and strategic lines of its further development and proposed projects.

A training seminar themed “How to trade on the securities market” was held for retail investors on December 21. Speakers were from the Exchange and brokerage companies. The training program featured an interactive game called “Financial degustation”.