Starting from 2025, payments and data for each bet made by a Kazakhstani are processed through a unified state accounting system. We analyze how the USU is structured, who it restricts in betting, and what happened to bookmaker payouts in March 2026.
While most countries in the region are addressing the legalization of betting through licensing and fines for advertising, Kazakhstan has gone further — it has built a technical system that accounts for payments and data for each bet and allows for checking participants against legal restrictions. The registry of debtors, age restrictions, and lists of individuals banned from playing can now be verified in relation to specific transactions, rather than just through post-factum reporting.
We explore how the Unified Accounting System (USU) works, who it blocks, where the 135,000 blocked Kazakhstani citizens came from, and what was behind the simultaneous "technical pause" at several major bookmakers in March 2026.
In Brief
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| What is it | Unified Accounting System (USU) — a state system for real-time betting control |
| Technical operator | Industry sources indicate that the operator of the USU is "NomaPay" LLP |
| Start of pilot operation | October 2025 |
| Mandatory connection for all bookmakers | From March 2026 |
| Data transmission for each transaction | Mandatory from June 16, 2026 |
| Minimum age of participant | 21 years |
| Restricted from betting due to debts and other reasons (March 27 – June 7, 2026) | 135,000 people out of ≈433,000 verified |
| Of these, in the debtor registry | ≈116,000 people |
| Access restricted to websites with illegal games (5 months 2026) | ≈62,000 |
| Blocked illegal websites | 7,000+ in the first month of the system's operation |
What is the USU and why was it built
The Unified Accounting System is a software-technical complex that connects directly to the hardware and software of each bookmaker and totalizator in Kazakhstan. According to the law "On Gambling Business" and the rules approved in 2025, the USU ensures the acceptance and accounting of all payments from players, the personalized accounting of each betting participant, each bet, and each payout. Organizers of gambling business are obliged to refuse to accept bets from individuals who are officially banned from participating in gambling — this obligation is implemented by the technical infrastructure of the USU.
In other words, a legal bookmaker in Kazakhstan processes payments through this system, not bypassing it — it is integrated into the very infrastructure of accepting bets, rather than functioning as an external supervisory body that checks reports post-factum.
How it works technically: the path of a single bet
How the USU restricts betting for debtors and other banned categories
According to the Committee for Regulation of Gambling Business and Lottery of the Ministry of Tourism, the USU automatically blocks bets from several categories of individuals:
Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, commenting on the system's operation, reminded that there is a complete ban on advertising bookmakers in Kazakhstan, and the USU implements existing legislative restrictions — it does not introduce new categories of bans but makes old norms technically unavoidable.
135,000 restricted from betting: what lies behind this figure
According to data cited by Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov, from March 27 to June 7, 2026, the USU identified about 433,000 users, of which 135,000 had their betting restricted. The breakdown is as follows: about 116,000 — individuals in the debtor registry, about 15,000 — individuals with formal self-restriction, and another approximately 4,000 fall under other legislative restrictions.
Combating the illegal market: a separate monitoring circuit
Alongside the payment and accounting function of the USU, the state uses digital monitoring to identify and restrict access to illegal gambling websites — this is a separate technical circuit, not identical to the USU as a payment accounting system. In the first month of operation, this monitoring identified and initiated the blocking of over 7,000 websites related to illegal gambling. According to data for the first five months of 2026, access was restricted to approximately 62,000 websites related to illegal gambling, of which about 34,000 were identified specifically by the monitoring system.
This is a separate market control function — it does not check legal players within the perimeter of the ESU, but seeks and restricts access to platforms that are not part of this perimeter at all.
March 2026: Freezing of Payments and Connection to the System
One of the most notable public moments of the ESU implementation was March 2026, when several large betting companies — Olimpbet, 1xBet, Tennisi, and others — simultaneously suspended the acceptance of deposits and the payment of winnings.
According to industry sources, the suspension may have been related to the transition of the bookmakers' payment infrastructure to the ESU and the operator NomaPay — banks temporarily disabled payment channels until the integration was completed. The official statements from the bookmakers themselves, however, mentioned technical work and changes in legislation without directly naming the integration with the ESU.
Implementation Timeline
- 2025Rules for the functioning of the ESU and the procedure for transferring information to government bodies by gambling business organizers are approved.
- October 23, 2025The ESU is already operating in pilot mode; more than 7,000 illegal sites were identified in the first month.
- March 2026Mandatory connection of all betting offices to the ESU; simultaneous suspension of payments by several large operators amid technical integration.
- March 16, 2026Amendments to the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Gambling Business" expand the list of territories for the placement of casinos and betting offices.
- April 20, 2026The order of the Minister of Tourism and Sports introduces amendments to the standard rules for the operation of gambling establishments — restricting access for citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan in certain border tourist zones.
- May 17, 2026New rules come into effect: expansion of the list of zones, citizenship restrictions for certain territories.
- May 24, 2026The order on expanded reporting for casinos and bookmakers comes into effect.
- June 16, 2026Bookmakers are required to transmit data to the ESU for each individual transaction — date, amount, currency, and status.
Gambling Zones: Where to Open a Casino in Kazakhstan
Alongside digital control, Kazakhstan continues to regulate the physical placement of gambling businesses. Casinos, gaming machine halls, and betting offices can only be located in certain zones — along the shores of the Kapshagay Reservoir in the Almaty region and in the Burabay district of the Akmolinsk region, and this list has been expanded since May 2026.
An important detail: in gambling establishments located in several border and tourist zones — on the Caspian coast of the Mangistau region, in the Panfilov district, at Lake Alakol, and in some areas of the East Kazakhstan region — only foreign citizens and stateless persons (excluding staff) are now allowed. This means that Kazakhstani citizens are physically prohibited from playing in casinos in these specific locations, even if they generally meet all legal requirements.
Kazakhstan in the Regional Context
| Country | Main Control Mechanism |
|---|---|
| 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | Technical — the ESU checks each bet in real-time |
| 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan | Licensing — a narrow circle of licensed operators (currently two) |
| 🇷🇺 Russia | Infrastructure — ERAI and Unified TSUPIS as a mandatory payment circuit |
| 🇬🇪 Georgia | Permissive — a broad competitive market with a licensing system |
The Kazakh model stands out precisely for the depth of technical integration: the system not only issues or revokes licenses but physically participates in every single transaction of each player.
What’s Next
- how the number of blocked users will change as the debtor registry is updated;
- whether new categories of restrictions will appear within the ESU;
- how monitoring of illegal gambling sites beyond the already restricted 62,000 will develop;
- whether the expanded list of gambling zones approved in May 2026 will actually come into effect;
- how the market will react to the requirement to transmit data for each transaction starting June 2026.
Conclusion
Kazakhstan has built one of the most technologically advanced mechanisms for controlling the gambling market in the region. The unified accounting system not only regulates who has the right to operate as a bookmaker — it checks each individual bet of each individual player at the moment it is made, verifying identity against the debtor registry, age restrictions, and lists of individuals prohibited by law from participating in gambling.
The results are already measurable: from March 27 to June 7, 2026, betting was restricted for 135,000 of approximately 433,000 verified users, and access was restricted to about 62,000 sites with illegal gambling in the first five months of the year. The transition to the new model was not painless for the market — in March 2026, this coincided with a simultaneous suspension of payments by several large bookmakers, which industry sources associate with the integration of payment infrastructure with the ESU.
For the rest of the region, the Kazakh ESU is an interesting case for the future: instead of relying solely on licensing and post-factum fines, the state has embedded control directly into the technical infrastructure for accepting bets.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Unified Accounting System (ESU) in Kazakhstan?
A state system that connects to the payment infrastructure of each bookmaker and totalizator and verifies the player's identity before accepting each bet — based on age, debts, criminal records, and other legal restrictions.
Who does the ESU automatically block?
Individuals under 21 years old, those in the Unified Debtor Registry (including alimony), convicted of criminal offenses, civil servants, military personnel, as well as individuals associated with terrorism and extremism.
How many Kazakhstani citizens are restricted from betting due to debts?
According to data from March 27 to June 7, 2026 — about 135,000 people out of approximately 433,000 verified, of which about 116,000 are due to being in the debtor registry.
What happened to bookmakers' payments in March 2026?
Several major operators (Olimpbet, 1xBet, Tennisi, and others) simultaneously suspended deposits and withdrawals, officially citing technical work and changes in legislation. According to industry sources, the suspension may have been related to the transition of the payment infrastructure to the ESU.
How many illegal sites are restricted in Kazakhstan?
According to data for the first five months of 2026, access is restricted to approximately 62,000 sites related to illegal gambling, of which about 34,000 were identified by the illegal resource monitoring system.
What is the legal age to place bets in Kazakhstan?
From the age of 21 — this is one of the conditions that the ESU automatically checks with each attempt to place a bet.
Who technically supports the operation of the ESU?
Industry sources indicate that this role is fulfilled by LLP "NomaPay"; official rules confirm the mechanism for determining the legal entity responsible for the system's operation.
Where can one legally play at a casino in Kazakhstan?
In certain gaming zones — on the shores of the Kapshagay Reservoir in the Almaty region and in the Burabay district of the Akmolinsk region; as of May 2026, the list of zones has been expanded, with access allowed only to foreigners in several border tourist locations.
Sources
- Committee for Regulation of Gambling Business and Lottery of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan
- BAQ.KZ — "How the digital betting and bookmaker control system works in Kazakhstan," October 2025
- Kursiv Media — "Bookmakers closed access to bets for 135 thousand Kazakhstanis due to debts," July 2026
- Kommersant, Sports.ru — materials on the suspension of bookmaker payouts, March 2026
- Kazinform, Zakon.kz, Forbes Kazakhstan — materials on changes in gambling business regulations, April–May 2026
- Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Gambling Business," Rules for the Operation of the ESU (adilet.zan.kz)
This material was prepared by BET RATING based on official data from the Committee for Regulation of Gambling Business and Lottery of the Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Kazakhstan and publications from Kazakhstani media as of August 2026. The parameters of the system and statistics may be updated by the regulator.
Gambling is associated with the risk of losing money.
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