Kaspi.kz eyes US listing

Kaspi.kz, a major fintech player in Kazakhstan that went public in London in October 2020, is preparing for a US listing. The company said that the move will result in an enlarged, more diverse shareholder base and increased trading liquidity. The announcement came as the company reported a 52% year-on-year increase in adjusted Q1 2023 profits to KZT178bn ($389m) and proposed a dividend of KZT750 per global depository receipt (GDR).

Kaspi.kz, valued at $6.5bn at the time of its London IPO, operates the most popular application in Kazakhstan, the Kaspi Super App. This app offers a range of services including bill payment, loans provision, peer-to-peer payments, an online marketplace and a personal finance management tool. Retailers throughout Kazakhstan extensively use it for selling goods and receiving payments. Kaspi also runs an online store that offers direct deliveries of groceries and other consumer goods.

The fintech company launched an online travel platform in late 2020 and expressed intentions to expand operations beyond Kazakhstan, targeting new businesses in the Central Asian and Caucasus regions. In March, the firm announced a four-month programme to repurchase GDRs worth up to $100m.

The move by Kaspi.kz to go public in the US may boost investor confidence and potentially increase the value of its GDRs. This is because the company can reduce the number of shares available on the market in order to drive up their price. The company’s UK/Kazakhstan dual IPO coincided with the release of a report by Astana International Financial Center (AIFC) titled “The State of Fintech in Central Asia: How Kazakhstan Drives the Regional Fintech Industry”.