KASE Halts Trading Early Amid Power Outage

The Kazakhstan Stock Exchange announced an early close of trading on August 14, 2026, across three platforms simultaneously — the currency market, equity market and derivatives market. The cause was a power outage that forced the trading system to halt at 16:40 Astana time, well ahead of the usual closing schedule. The exchange clarified that clearing and settlement for trades already executed during the day will be processed later, once technical issues are resolved. Such technical disruptions at the exchange are relatively rare, and market participants typically do not lose previously completed transactions. The incident is a reminder of how critical infrastructure reliability is for the smooth functioning of a national financial market.