Huge money spin in Kazakhstan's shadow economy

The turnover of Kazakhstan’s shadow economy has amounted not even to dozens but to hundreds of millions of dollars in the last 5 years. Its value can be compared to the country’s GDP, Liter magazine writes. “If these money are brought out of the shade, it will become possible to fulfill the President’s instruction on doubling the GDP ahead of schedule. The instruction was made in the development program to be implemented until 2030,” the magazine writes adding that “taxes are not paid on these funds, they are not used to construct housing or open companies; and only jet sets are using them at their own discretion”. According to the official statistics, the volume of Kazakhstan’s shadow economy reached $18 billion in 2007. According to the International Monetary Fund, Kazakhstan’s GDP made $214.84 billion in 2011 (53rd among 182 countries). The experts say that the progressing growth of the shadow operations is related to a steady increase of uncontrolled cash. “Use of cash is the seat of the trouble for the whole country,” the magazine writes. According to Kazakhstan National Bank, the share of cash in Kazakhstan made 14 percent in January 1, 2012 (this value is normally twice lower in developed countries). In 2011 second-tier banks cashed out 141.9 billion tenge ($965 million). And this is only in the national currency - tenge. Kazakhstan planed to decrease the turnover of illegal funds by increasing the bank commission for cashing 10 to 15-fold, up to 5 percent, deputy chairman of Kazakhstan Agency for Countering Economic and Corruption Crimes Aivar Bodanov said recently. This measure would be applied to all the entrepreneurs: both one-day companies opened for cashing out funds and ordinary companies. However, this is only a plan. The new rules are still not reflected in any draft legislative acts, the magazine writes. Besides, Kazakhstan is planning to take the shadow capital to the light by replacing paper notes with electronic ones, i.e. switching to electronic payments the way it is done in Europe and the United States. Non-cash payments will enable Kazakhstan to more precisely define the real turnover and profits of sales outlets.