Hassan Maishera
Retail Investors Would Have An Investment Cap
Financial regulators in Kazakhstan are looking to limit how much retail investors invest in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. This is according to a report by local news website Kapital.kz earlier this week.
According to the report, local retail investors would be allowed to invest 10% of their annual income or 5% of their total assets, excluding their main residence, up to $100,000 annually. However, retail investors have to provide evidence of their finances to the regulator before they are allowed to invest in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
The report added that should investors not provide any evidence of their finances, they would be limited to investing up to $1,000 per month. The publication said it attained the information from the Astana Financial Services Agency (AFSA) directly.
The AFSA said it introduced the limits to protect retail investors from crypto-related “high risks” that can lead to the complete loss of capital. The AFSA is not the first regulatory agency in the world to be worried about the risks of cryptocurrency investments.
Virtually all financial regulators, especially the central banks, have talked about the risks involved in cryptocurrency investment. However, that hasn’t deterred people from investing in BTC and other cryptocurrencies.
The cryptocurrency space has grown to become a $2.8 trillion market, making it one of the leading financial markets in the world. The crypto market is expected to be worth at least $5 trillion over the coming years as cryptocurrency adoption continues to grow, and more funds enter the space.
According to the publication, the AFSA’s rule came into effect on October 26. Kazakhstan has become one of the leading countries in the cryptocurrency space. The country has benefited from China’s latest ban on crypto mining as some Chinese mining farms moved their operations to Kazakhstan.
