Amid growing competition for capital and high borrowing rates, Kazakhstan Housing Company (KHC) presented its role as a key player at the Astana Construction Forum, held on October 16 in Astana. The plenary discussion, focused on the competition for financing among developers, brought together leading representatives of the construction industry. Participants discussed challenges faced by developers, including the availability of financing and high costs of servicing loans.
KHC actively supports the housing construction market, including guaranteeing shared-equity participation and subsidizing loans for private developers. These measures aim to improve housing affordability for citizens and promote transparency in developers’ activities. Ultimately, transparency and financial reporting according to international standards are key conditions for creating favorable conditions for attracting investments to housing construction.
In 2024, KHC will provide a total volume of financial support to the housing construction market exceeding KZT 460 billion. “Our goal is to increase housing affordability for all segments of the population in every city of our country,” emphasized the Chairman of the Board.
The forum also addressed the insufficient interest of construction companies in raising financing through bond issuance on KASE and AIX, despite the potential for attracting long-term financing. “Although the private sector’s share on these platforms is still small — around 31% of the total corporate bond placements — these bonds can become a key channel for attracting working capital for developers,” participants noted.
During the discussion, KHC proposed creating a financial reporting repository for construction companies based on existing associations, such as the Kazakhstan Builders Association and the Union of Constructors. This initiative will help ensure transparency among members of these organizations and increase the attractiveness of their investment projects to potential investors and second-tier banks.
Speakers at the forum included Askar Mashaev, Chief Analyst at Kursiv Research, and Viktor Mikryukov, President of the Kazakhstan Builders Association. Both emphasized the importance of openness and honesty in financial reporting for attracting investments.
Additionally, forum participants were invited to the upcoming KHC Workshop 2024, scheduled for October 22 in Astana, where new digital solutions in housing construction and legislative innovations in shared-equity construction will be presented.
The forum served as an important platform for discussing the future of housing construction in Kazakhstan, demonstrating that public and private initiatives can work in harmony to create a sustainable environment for housing market development.