Kyrgyzstan’s crypto tax take nears $22.8 million…surpasses annual revenue from the country’s largest traditional bazaar

Kyrgyzstan’s virtual asset industry generated annual tax revenue of about $22.8 million, paying more in taxes than the country’s largest traditional market, according to reports.

According to coverage on the 11th (local time), last year’s virtual asset trading volume in Kyrgyzstan exceeded $20.5 billion, and related tax revenue was tallied at $22.8 million. That is roughly on par with the combined annual tax revenue of $7.9 million from Dordoi Market in the capital Bishkek and $13.6 million from the patent tax (for businesses voluntarily paying under the patent system).

Temir Kazibayev, chairman of the Association of Virtual Asset Market Participants of Kyrgyzstan, said, “Taxes collected from Dordoi Market were $7.9 million, and the patent tax was $13.6 million,” adding, “Tax revenue generated from virtual asset trading is at a similar level to the total of those.”

The local virtual asset industry is growing rapidly. Trading volume in the first through third quarters of 2025 alone topped $7.9 billion, and more than 200 virtual asset exchanges and 11 mining companies are currently registered.

More recently, the launch of the gold-backed stablecoin USDKG has helped drive market expansion. Another stablecoin, KGST, is issued pegged to the Kyrgyz som. In particular, A7A5, a ruble-pegged stablecoin designed by a Russian company and issued through a Kyrgyz legal entity, is said to have processed more than $100 billion in transactions in its first year alone.

However, amid allegations that A7A5 was used to help Russia evade sanctions, some Kyrgyz financial institutions and virtual asset platforms were placed under sanctions by the European Union (EU), the United States and the United Kingdom. The EU’s latest additional sanctions package reportedly includes two Kyrgyz banks.

The government is also accelerating regulatory work. A recently enacted bill signed by the president clarifies legal definitions for virtual assets and stablecoins and allows the executive branch to flesh out procedures for the issuance and distribution of digital assets. The scope of state involvement in mining-related matters was also included in the rules.

Unlike just a few years ago, when virtual assets were widely viewed as fraud or pyramid schemes, there is now a growing perception that they represent investment and industrial opportunities.