Bank of Astana, following a complete brand makeover and the implementation of a new digital strategy in 2014, is seeing its efforts pay off. The bank is now Kazakhstan’s leader in digital banking and next-generation financial services.
Its digital strategy is based on offering top-quality mobile banking services, which many customers have praised because they save more of their time and money.
Since the change in ownership in 2013, Bank of Astana has practiced an innovative approach to business development and adopted the latest technology, which has resulted in lower transaction and service costs for its customers and expanded access through services such as mobile and internet banking.
Earlier this year, the Bank of Astana went public on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange and, after a day of trading, gained more than 1,500 new investors. At the end of July, it was named The Best Digital Bank in Kazakhstan by Global Finance magazine.
“We believe in full digitalization of the bank. In the future, many banks will cut costs and reduce expenses by going digital. We live in a digital era and we can’t just ignore it,” CEO Iskender Mailibayev stressed. “We have improved the mobile app and extended the list of remotely provided services. And this has resulted in more clients and more partners for the bank,” Mailibayev added.
While constantly improving its digital strategy, the bank has not forgotten to maintain its trademark level of service. The Bank of Astana was the first in Kazakhstan to launch the free delivery of plastic cards to 18 cities across the country.
“Japan is a leader in fintech, and we are excited to learn from their experience for the advancement of Kazakhstan. We haven’t worked with any major Asian or Japanese companies yet, but would love to establish relationships in the future,” Mailibayev said.