AIFC court bars Coinbase, BingX and four other crypto platforms from unlicensed services
The Astana regulator won a default judgment in September, which it announced on 20 October; the judge bound Google and Apple to the order once served but declined, for now, to enjoin them directly.
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The court of the Astana International Financial Centre has barred the operators of six crypto platforms, BingX, Bitcoin.com, Huobi Global (HTX), BitMart, Coinbase and WEEX, from providing, offering or advertising digital asset services in the financial centre without a licence, the AIFC said on 20 October. The orders, won by the Astana Financial Services Authority (AFSA), also forbid the operators to distribute mobile apps for those services.
The court granted the regulator's claims on 15 September against seven platforms and amended the order on 18 September to remove LBank, whose operator had blocked access to its services in Kazakhstan, according to the announcement.
What the judgment says
Justice Sir Stephen Richards entered judgment in default in case AIFC-C/CFI/2026/0010 because none of the operators filed an acknowledgment of service or a defence in time. The defendants are named as persons unknown, the operators of each platform, and were served by email at addresses publicly associated with them, as a court order of 5 May had allowed, according to the judgment.
The injunctions rest on Article 12-1 of Kazakhstan's Law on Digital Assets, inserted by an amending law of 16 January 2026 that took effect on 1 May. Under that article the wider regulatory role across Kazakhstan belongs to the National Bank, not to AFSA, and the court limited its orders to the territory of the AIFC and to users located there, the judgment says. The operators are jointly and severally liable for the regulator's costs of KZT 1,995,479.95, made up of KZT 1,950,479.95 for legal work and KZT 45,000 in court fees.
Google and Apple
The judge accepted that an order restraining the distribution of apps would be "practically unenforceable without the cooperation of the operators of those distribution platforms". He ordered notice of the judgment to be given to Google LLC and Apple Inc and held that, once served, they are bound by it as if they were parties. They may apply to set it aside or vary it, provided they have acknowledged service under the court's rules. He did not grant a separate injunction against either company. "It seems to me that the sensible course in the first instance is for the Claimant to enter into dialogue with Google LLC and Apple Inc about the specific steps required," the judgment says.
AFSA's chief executive, Evgeniya Bogdanova, said in the AIFC announcement that the orders would be sent to the operators of Google Play and the Apple App Store. AFSA did not say whether they had been delivered, Unchained reported on 21 October.
How the case narrowed
AFSA issued written warnings to more than 20 crypto platforms in 2025 and began court proceedings in early 2026 against those that kept operating without a licence, according to the AIFC announcement. It said nine platforms then restricted access in Kazakhstan through Google Play and the Apple App Store and that it withdrew its claims against them, and that seven platforms have said they intend to apply for an AFSA licence to operate digital asset trading facilities. The judgment records a different count: claims against 12 operators were discontinued by notices dated 26 June, 15 July and 27 July. Neither document reconciles the two figures.
The court found that unlicensed providers undermine the integrity of the AIFC's regulatory framework and compete unfairly with licensed firms that bear the cost of anti-money laundering, customer due diligence and supervision, the AIFC said. AFSA said it has worked with the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the issue since May 2026.
The regulator has been busy on other fronts. It added an independent director to its board in September. For companies incorporated in the centre, the AIFC's own rules set out the duties every director owes. The judgment gives the regulator liberty to apply to vary the order, and any later application for an order against Google or Apple would set out the revised terms sought and the precise legal basis, after which both companies would be given an opportunity to reply, according to the judgment.