# Payment Providers in Kazakhstan: Interbank QR and KZT Business Payouts

A merchant comparing payment providers in Kazakhstan needs a precise answer to a familiar sales claim: “We support QR.” Which customers can pay, through which applications, under the proposed merchant agreement? Those answers determine whether a new acceptance arrangement can replace several separate checkout options or simply add another one. Kazakhstan's interbank QR service makes this a timely comparison. The useful starting point is the combination of participating institutions, the merchant's acquiring arrangement and the actual purchase journey. Business payouts require a separate assessment of the recipient and payment purpose.

## A numerical starting point for the provider comparison

We reviewed **42 unique historical payment offers** linked only to this country: 18 collection offers and 24 payout offers. They provide a structured starting point for comparing payment costs, access to funds and operational requirements. 82 additional offers linked to several countries are excluded from the country-only calculations below.

The source is the PayStar export dated 14 September 2026, supplied by payment gateways. We recomputed its aggregates, but did not independently verify its commercial statements. This is a historical sample, not a market survey, a count of PSPs or methods, or proof of active connections and current availability. Conditions can change weekly or more often. Independent country, currency and method associations do not establish every possible payment route. Direction counts and settlement-label charts cover all recorded currencies. Only the percentage comparison below is restricted to explicit KZT fee records.

42 unique offers linked only to this GEO, across all recorded currencies; not methods, providers or live connections. [Download SVG](https://paystar.uk/kazakhstan-payment-solutions/media/2026-10-08-v2/charts/offers-en-desktop-download.svg)

## What the recorded KZT percentage components show

We calculate the arithmetic mean of explicit percentage components stated in KZT, giving each comparable offer equal weight. A record qualifies only when its structured percentage matches one unambiguous percentage in the original fee description. Offers in another fee currency, missing percentages and ambiguous descriptions are excluded.

We also exclude bound or conditional percentages such as “from”, tiers and explicitly restricted customer categories. Exact nominal percentage components with fixed minimums or caps can remain in the sample; those minimums and caps still affect the final charge.

| Direction | n | Mean | Median | Range |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Collections | 13 | 8.95% | 8.5% | 7–12% |
| Payouts | 15 | 3.95% | 3.8% | 2.5–8.5% |

Explicit KZT percentage components only. n is the comparable sample in each direction; missing fees are excluded, not zero. [Download SVG](https://paystar.uk/kazakhstan-payment-solutions/media/2026-10-08-v2/charts/fees-en-desktop-download.svg)

**These are percentage components, not all-in payment prices.** Fixed charges, FX, tax, reserves, minimums and charges for refunds or other exceptions must be assessed separately. This sample is not weighted by payment volume, contains no measured conversion rate and cannot rank provider quality. Small or insufficiently independent groups are withheld.

### A hypothetical payment calculation

Take an illustrative payment of 10,000 KZT; this is not a typical market ticket. Applying the rounded means shown above gives:

- Collections: 10,000 KZT × 8.95% = **895 KZT**.
- Payouts: 10,000 KZT × 3.95% = **395 KZT**.

Each line is a separate direction, not a combined service quote. The arithmetic shows only the percentage part. Ask for an actual quote at your ticket size, volume, business model and settlement currency before calculating net proceeds.

## When money becomes usable matters

Collection offers across all recorded currencies. T/D labels are recorded as supplied, without assuming calendar or business days. Other includes complex labels and pooled groups below 3 records. No guaranteed settlement time. [Download SVG](https://paystar.uk/kazakhstan-payment-solutions/media/2026-10-08-v2/charts/timing-en-desktop-download.svg)

A successful payment notification and money available to your business are different events. Treat recorded settlement labels as questions for a provider: what starts the clock, which cut-off applies, are weekends counted, which account is credited, and can a reserve or review delay availability?

For payouts, agree prefunding, beneficiary validation, rejection handling and how returned funds appear in your balance. An incoming-payment settlement label does not prove payout completion time.

### A cash-buffer planning example

If a business must fund 1,000,000 KZT of obligations per day, a one-day gap requires 1,000,000 KZT; a three-day gap requires 3,000,000 KZT. The additional buffer is 2,000,000 KZT. This is a hypothetical constant-flow model, excluding fees, reserves and volatility, not an observed settlement promise.

## Check the participating service, then the merchant arrangement

The National Payment Corporation's participant register, dated **1 September 2026**, lists **15 institutions for QR payments** and **16 for transfers by mobile phone number**. These are separate service lists. Participation does not establish that every merchant QR, banking application feature or PSP integration supports your proposed purchase flow. [NPC participant register](https://npck.kz/open-banking-open-api/uchastniki-msmp/).




NPC describes interbank QR as a customer-to-business service for goods and services, with static and dynamic QR scenarios. Its phone-number transfer service is described separately as transfers between individuals. A successful personal transfer therefore gives you no evidence of business collection or payout eligibility. [NPC service overview](https://npck.kz/open-banking-open-api/).




Ask a prospective acquirer to identify the merchant service in its proposal. Establish whether it uses interbank QR, a bank-specific acceptance arrangement, or both. Then request the supported payer applications for that arrangement and the steps your business must complete to activate it. Treat an existing QR at the till as something to verify, rather than assuming that wider network participation automatically upgrades it.

## Test the checkout change you actually want

Consider a **hypothetical retailer** with a physical shop and a website. Its aim is to simplify checkout while retaining customers who use different banking applications. The retailer should give each candidate the same acceptance exercise:







- Show one purchase through two relevant payer applications, using the proposed merchant account and QR service. Record the merchant identity and amount shown to each customer.


- Demonstrate the website purchase on a phone. Establish whether the service supports that channel and how the customer reaches the payment application and returns to the order.


- Explain which acceptance contracts, merchant accounts and operational tools remain necessary after the proposed change.





The third question prevents an attractive demonstration from obscuring the commercial decision. A single QR presentation is useful only when the merchant understands what it consolidates. Keep existing acceptance options until the replacement has been agreed and tested for the relevant customer journeys.




For the retailer, order confirmation and refunds also belong in that exercise. Ask which merchant-side result permits fulfilment and how a refund connects to the original purchase. A refund and an unrelated payment to a supplier have different business purposes; qualify them separately.

## Build the KZT payout brief around the beneficiary

For KZT business payouts, begin with who receives the money and why: a supplier invoice, a customer refund or another defined obligation. Specify the recipient's legal status, destination account, expected amount and frequency. Ask the candidate to demonstrate the relevant business service, rather than relying on a consumer transfer screen.




Kazakhstan's domestic non-cash payment rules identify recipient, account, bank, tax-identification and payment-purpose information for relevant payment documents. They also allow specified beneficiary details to be replaced by an alternative identifier under the payment system's requirements. The practical task is to confirm the information required by your chosen service. [National Bank Rules No. 208, paragraphs 7 and 7-1](https://old.adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/V1600014419).




Request a sample beneficiary form and payment instruction. Check how the account and recipient identity are validated, who supplies the beneficiary classification and payment-purpose code, and how incorrect details are corrected. Ask for examples of a rejected instruction and a returned payment, including the status, explanation and balance movement your team receives.

## Confirm where the money becomes usable

For collections, agree the receiving account, settlement currency, deductions and timing. For payouts, agree the funding account, available balance, processing windows and treatment of returned funds. Compare both proposals using the same expected volumes and transaction sizes.




An international business should resolve its contracting entity and intended settlement destination early. Kazakhstan's currency-operation rules require relevant documents or information; they also specify contract identification for operations under contracts requiring a registration number. Those conditions need assessment for the actual arrangement. Domestic QR acceptance alone does not establish a cross-border settlement service. [National Bank Rules No. 40, paragraphs 3 and 5](https://old.adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/V1900018512).

## The role of PayStar

PayStar provides information for comparing payment solutions and, where agreed, a technical layer for connecting and operating them. PayStar is not a bank or payment service provider and does not accept, hold or settle customer or business funds in its own name.

You select the payment provider and enter into a direct agreement with it. The provider processes payments and performs settlement under that agreement. Local eligibility, required authorisations and commercial terms must be confirmed for your company and use case. A method described in this article is not a promise that it is available through PayStar for your business.

Information about payment options is free. Payment processing and any agreed technical services have separate commercial terms.

## Official sources and research scope

- [НПК — Участники МСМП](https://npck.kz/open-banking-open-api/uchastniki-msmp/)
- [НПК — Межбанковская система мобильных платежей](https://npck.kz/open-banking-open-api/)
- [Национальный Банк — Правила № 208](https://old.adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/V1600014419)
- [Национальный Банк — Правила № 40](https://old.adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/V1900018512)

Research check: 8 October 2026. The export date remains 14 September 2026. Local scheme descriptions are context, not confirmation of a particular provider’s capabilities.