Starting September 7, Kazakh citizens will be able to transfer up to 100% of their pension savings to private management companies. However, according to economist and independent director of the Unified Accumulative Pension Fund (UAPF) Eldar Shamsutdinov, for some depositors the choice between UAPF, private management companies (PMC), and deposits may be secondary. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.

Currently, depositors can transfer up to 50% of pension savings formed from mandatory pension contributions and up to 100% of savings from voluntary contributions to private companies. After the new rules come into force, Kazakh citizens will be able to independently determine what portion of their savings to transfer to a private management company, up to 100%. Often, private PMCs provide returns that outpace inflation and are higher than those of the National Bank, the main manager of Kazakhstani pension assets.

Shamsutdinov believes this is an important measure, but first and foremost, a depositor should look not at the yield of a specific instrument but at the size of their own savings.

"The main problem is not how savings are invested, but that they are insufficient," the economist writes.

In his opinion, for a person with savings of 15-20 million tenge, the difference between investment strategies really matters. But if the pension account has a small amount, even high returns cannot fully solve the problem.

As an example, Shamsutdinov compares two situations: 1 million tenge at 18% return yields 180 thousand tenge per year, while 10 million tenge at 10% return yields 1 million tenge.

"The pension system does not turn small and irregular contributions into a large pension," he notes.

If a person has been transferring small amounts for many years or did so irregularly, the difference between returns of 10%, 12%, and 15% does not solve the problem of insufficient pension capital.

Shamsutdinov believes that transferring savings to PMCs should not become a mandatory step for all depositors.

"PMC is an additional opportunity. A person can leave money in the UAPF and not make any investment decisions," he writes.

In his opinion, the basic strategy of the pension system should work without active participation of the depositor. A person should not have to understand credit spreads and stock multipliers to count on a normal pension. PMCs, the economist believes, are needed primarily for those who want to choose a different level of risk and a different asset structure.

"This does not mean that everyone should go to PMCs. It does not mean that PMCs will necessarily earn more. And it does not mean that a deposit at 18% is a universal alternative to the pension system. For one depositor, the future pension will depend on returns. For another, primarily on the size of accumulated capital. For a third, on how many years contributions were made for them. A pension requires a horizon of decades. Save and look for alternative sources of income," the economist noted.

Pension money transferred to the management of an investment company does not go to its balance sheet, Shamsutdinov notes. It remains the property of the depositor and is accounted for on UAPF accounts in a custodian bank. Therefore, even if the management company goes bankrupt, this does not mean automatic loss of pension savings.

However, risks still remain. For example, a management company may invest in bonds of a company that defaults, or in stocks that decline. A currency strategy may also prove unsuccessful.

"Therefore, the task of regulation is not to eliminate any loss, but to control concentration, related transactions, conflicts of interest, and the risk taken. The experience of old private pension funds should not be forgotten. There were problem assets and abuses. Today the architecture is different, but the quality of the new system should be assessed not by statements, but by what assets PMCs buy, how concentrated the portfolios are, and how supervision works," Shamsutdinov states.

From September 7, 2026, new rules will allow Kazakh citizens to transfer up to 100% of pension savings to PMCs for trust management. The depositor will be able to independently choose the management company, investment strategy, and the amount of funds to transfer. The new opportunities also apply to citizens for whom mandatory professional pension contributions are paid.

Each manager will be able to offer up to three types of portfolios – conservative, moderate, and risky. They will differ in risk level, asset composition, and investment horizon.

Currently, six companies are admitted to manage pension assets: Alatau City Invest, BCC Invest, Halyk Global Markets, Halyk Finance, Centras Securities, and Tansar Capital.

If the portfolio return falls below the established benchmark, the PMC must compensate the difference from its own capital. If a company loses the right to manage pension assets, the money will automatically return to the management of the National Bank.

Eldar Shamsutdinov has been a member of the UAPF board of directors since June 22, 2026. On August 6, the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market approved his candidacy as an independent director of the fund.

Earlier, Shamsutdinov compared the returns of deposits and pension savings and explained why a higher deposit rate does not always mean a more advantageous option for long-term savings.