Kazakhstan's pawnshops continue to increase their revenues. In the first quarter of 2026, the sector earned nearly 55 billion tenge, with profits growing more than sixfold over two years. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Finprom.

According to the results of the first quarter of 2026, the sector's total net profit reached 54.7 billion tenge. This is 2.2 times more than in the same period last year. For comparison, in the first quarter of 2024, this figure was only 8.7 billion tenge. Thus, over two years, pawnshop profits increased more than sixfold.

The leader in net profit was M-Lombard. In January-March 2026, the company earned 12.9 billion tenge, compared to 6.5 billion tenge a year earlier.

Second place went to MK-Lombard with a profit of 10.5 billion tenge, while a year ago the figure was 4.5 billion tenge.

The top three was rounded out by MK-Zoloto Lombard, which increased its profit from 3.6 billion to 9.7 billion tenge.

Other players also showed strong dynamics. Astra-Lombard increased its profit 7.1 times, from 421.9 million to 3 billion tenge. GoldFinMarket and Trillioner Lombard boosted their figures 17 times, to 700.5 million and 402.5 million tenge, respectively. Bolim-Lombard 1's profit grew almost sevenfold to 535.9 million tenge.

Despite the overall growth, part of the market remains unprofitable. As of March 2026, 337 out of 466 operating pawnshops showed a profit. A year earlier, there were 324 such pawnshops. Another 44 companies ended the quarter with neither profit nor loss. The number of unprofitable pawnshops decreased from 109 to 85.

The largest losses were recorded by Lombard €lit (Evrolit) Almaty – minus 134.1 million tenge, and Most-lombard – minus 120.3 million tenge. For comparison, a year earlier, the largest loss was shown by Aktiv Lombard – 442.7 million tenge.

Against the backdrop of rising profits, the sector's loan portfolio continues to grow. At the end of March 2026, the principal debt on loans reached 481.3 billion tenge, compared to 295.1 billion tenge a year earlier. Growth amounted to 63%. Compared to March 2024, the volume more than doubled.

At the same time, the share of problem loans overdue by more than 90 days (NPL-90) decreased. In March 2024, the figure was 3.7%, in 2025 – 2.3%, and in 2026 – 2.1%. However, in monetary terms, the volume of overdue loans increased from 6.8 billion to 10.2 billion tenge.

We note that people often turn to pawnshops due to a lack of funds. For many, this is a way to quickly get cash for current expenses or urgent needs (treatment, repairs) if banks refuse credit due to high debt burden. People go to pawnshops not only because of total poverty, but also due to temporary financial difficulties. This financial instrument has its pros and cons.

In February 2026, it became known that the owner of the Aktiv Lombard chain had apartments in the UAE and billions in accounts.

The largest and most profitable pawnshops in Kazakhstan have been named: read here.