Bagdat Mussin was replaced in the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry by Zhaslan Madiyev, General Manager of Binance Kazakhstan. The Investigation Department CMN.KZ decided to find out what is known about the new minister and his family
The career rise of the official was enchanting. He had just graduated from university and immediately got a job at Alliance Bank JSC. While in a financial institution, Zhaslan Madiev rose to the head of the debt securities department and moved to the investment bank Morgan Stanley in London, he managed to get an education at Columbia University under the Bolashak program.
Photo: Ministry of Digital Transformation
And then work in the Samruk-Kazyna holding, the center for strategic research and analysis of the presidential administration, the Prime Minister’s Office and KTZ. Among his positions are Adviser to the Prime Minister, Vice Minister of National Economy and First Vice Minister of Digitalization. On October 19, 2022, he was appointed Director of Binance Kazakhstan. Madiev managed to work in various structures and show himself in a fairly good way, since he received state awards.
As is usually the case with the bureaucratic beau monde, almost nothing is registered on them themselves. And their connections in the business environment are often limited. Once on the government Olympus, civil servants have to follow the rules and give their savings to trust management. But the relatives of officials own interesting companies and assets. This is what happened to Zhaslan Madiyev.
Family ties
The new minister was born in 1983 in Almaty in the family of Khasen and Maira Madiyev. He has a younger brother, Olzhas. According to data for 2017, Zhaslan Madiev is married to Maira Turganova. They are raising three children: Aisultan (born in 2010), Ibrahim (born in 2012) and Maryam (born in 2015).
Presumably, the father of Zhaslan Madiev is Khasen Madiev
Connection with the Nazarbayevs and a mining farm in Ekibastuz
Unlike the elder Zhaslan, the younger Olzhas Madiev has an individual entrepreneur "Qazpack", QAZ PACKAGE LLP and GAS ENERGY SOLUTION LLP. The minister’s brother became an individual entrepreneur quite recently - in June 2022. More interesting are the enterprises, and especially the founders in them and their connection with the family of the ex-president of Kazakhstan.
«GAS ENERGY SOLUTION" is owned by three more Kazakhstanis: Yerbolsyn Sarsenov, Zhanat Aldebergenov and Anton Rubanov. The first two implemented the project of the first data center in Ekibastuz. It was there that bitcoins were "mined". In May 2021, Sarsenov and Aldebergenov partially sold their stake in ENEGIX LLP to the eldest of Bolat Nazarbayev’s sons, Nurbol. Now the company belongs to an organization from the UAE - ENEGIX GLOBAL DMCC. Whether Nurbol Nazarbayev is listed as the ultimate beneficiary in ENEGIX LLP is still unknown. It should be noted that both enterprises are registered at the same address of the data center in Ekibastuz - accounting quarter 54, building 19.
In February 2024, GAS ENERGY SOLUTION agreed on a sketch for the construction of a data center in the village of Makat, Atyrau region. The land was allocated to the enterprise by the akimat. The corresponding decree was signed on December 22, 2023. The company of the minister’s brother cannot boast of large injections into the state treasury. For two years, she paid a little more than 71 thousand tenge.
The connections of the second company are also interesting. The founders of Qaz Package are Olzhas Madiyev, Mukhtar Nurzhigitov (member of the Chamber of Legal Consultants of the Kazakhstan Bar Association), Rakhmatulla Ayazbayev (was affiliated with KoZhaN JSC for the exploration and production of hydrocarbons, owner of Maten Petroleum JSC), Bauyrzhan Umarov and Murat Minzhasov (was affiliated with Nursultan Nazarbayev International Airport). In two years, the company has replenished the state treasury by 1.9 million tenge.
There was also a third organization. Madiev opened ABM Invest LLP in November 2020 and closed it in September 2022. The company was engaged in financing in various sectors of the economy and investment activities.
Mercedes-Benz 4Matic for 58 thousand dollars for the minister’s brother
In 2020, Olzhas Madiev decided to buy himself an elite used car. It was supposed to be delivered to Kazakhstan from the United States. Rhino auto group Qazaqstan LLP was supposed to provide consulting services for the selection, purchase and
transportation of Mercedes Benz GLS 450 4Matic 2020.
Rhino auto group Qazaqstan asked for 58 thousand dollars for its services. This included both the cost of the car itself and transportation across the United States and to Kazakhstan.
Photo kolesa.kz
The partner company was DBA Millenium auto group. For the car, Olzhas Madiev paid 2,140,000 tenge (five thousand dollars) as security for obligations, 2,408,000 tenge (5,626 dollars) for services and 58 thousand dollars for the car. As a result, the minister’s brother never received his Mercedes-Benz. 10 thousand dollars were returned to Madiev by the company after negotiations. But he still had to sue organizations for the cost of the car.
On November 14, 2023, the Nauryzbay District Court of Almaty decided to return 27,101,252 tenge (58 thousand dollars at the rate of 1 dollar for 460 tenge), 274,465 tenge of state duty and 300 thousand tenge for legal services to Olzhas Madiyev.
According to Kolesa.kz, the cost of the Mercedes-Benz GLS 450 4Matic starts from 44 million tenge.
Screenshot kolesa.kz
Charitable foundation with Kairat’s daughter Mami and premium dates
Two companies and a public fund are registered in the name of the wife of the new minister, Maira Turganova: KELESHEK SOCIAL CHARITY FUND, BATEEL KAZAKHSTAN LLP and SCIENCE FOR ALL LLP.
The charitable organization is headed by Gulnur Zhazykbayeva. The founders are the minister’s wife and the daughter of the former chairman of the Constitutional Council Kairat, Mami Ainur. She is married to the former Minister of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry Askar Zhumagaliyev. In 2020, KELESHEK SOCIAL CHARITY FUND, together with the World of Equal Opportunities, allocated laptops for online learning to 40 schoolchildren from Almaty and Mangystau regions. And the foundation also gave disabled children small gifts for the New Year.
Zhazykbayeva also manages other companies of Ainur Mami. For example, her beauty salon Californication Beauty LLP. The daughter of the former official owes the state 1.3 million tenge for land and property tax of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs.
«BATEEL KAZAKHSTAN is engaged in the retail trade of bakery, flour and sugar confectionery. Presumably, it is through this company that premium organic dates, chocolate products and luxury gift sets from products under the company’s brand are sold. Apparently, the sales of the minister’s wife are going very well. Since 2022, the company has paid 99.9 million tenge in taxes.
«SCIENCE FOR ALL" is engaged in the activities of museums. The company was registered in Astana at the address: Dostyk Street, building 16. Within walking distance is the Ministry of Defense and the Baiterek Monument. The building houses a hotel, dry cleaners, coffee shops, confectionery shops and clothing boutiques.
Photo booking.com
Apartment in Pavlodar from the minister’s mother-in-law
In 2018, Maira Turganova’s mother, Rakhia, sold an apartment with an area of 189.9 square meters to the akimat of Pavlodar. The Department of Housing and Communal Services, Passenger Transport and Highways of Pavlodar allocated 32 million tenge from the district budget for a three-room apartment. The sale and purchase agreement was signed on March 31. In this transaction, not only the cost of housing is interesting, but also its location.
Screenshot of the contract
Let’s just say that the akimat of Pavlodar could buy an apartment cheaper. On the krisha.kz website, housing of 266 square meters in the same house is sold for 135 million tenge. But recall that this is the price for 2024, and in 2018 it was not yet possible to use pension savings and the cost of real estate was much lower. The description of the application indicates that this is an elite brick house built in 2007. It is located on the banks of the Irtysh with a guarded area and parking.
Only local old-timers tell a completely different story. According to them, it was not allowed to build on the ground under the building, because the soil is saturated with water (floater - Ed.). The house was still built, but the plot under it could not be privatized for a long time.
In 2023, an accident occurred near the building, in which the developer was guilty. According to the technical specifications, ChSK LLP was supposed to relay the cast iron pipe. And thus reconnect the houses along Komissarskaya and Teplova streets, but he did not do it. Later, this led to an accident.
It is not known how the akimat decided to buy housing in a house with such problems. At the time of the sale of the apartment, Turganova’s son-in-law held the position of vice president for finance at KTZ. And before that, he was an adviser to the Prime Minister under Bakytzhan Sagintayev.
The sister of the minister’s wife also has a business. Aruzhan Turganova is registered as an individual entrepreneur "Basqoor" (previously called "Bateel Management", as well as LLP of Maira Turganova) and LLP "BASQOOR". As an individual entrepreneur, a relative of Zhaslan Madiev sells bakery products. And as the owner of the company, he is engaged in the architectural business.