The OSCE, through its Office of the Co-ordinator of Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA), held a two-day workshop in Astana on 6-7 August 2025 to enhance the capacity of the Prosecutor’s Office and law enforcement agencies of the Republic of Kazakhstan in investigating crimes involving virtual assets and facilitating the recovery of stolen or lost digital assets.
The event gathered representatives from the General Prosecutor’s Office of Kazakhstan, including its regional offices, the Asset Recovery Committee of the General Prosecutor’s Office and the Law Enforcement Academy, to exchange experiences and enhance practical skills.
The objective of the workshop was to enhance the capacity of the Prosecutor’s Office and law enforcement institutions of the Republic of Kazakhstan in investigating crimes involving virtual assets and facilitating asset recovery. Through expert-led sessions, practical exercises, and peer exchange, the workshop provided participants with a solid understanding of blockchain technology, typologies of virtual asset-related crimes, the use of blockchain analytics tools, and international standards and good practices in virtual asset tracing and recovery.
By sharing international expertise and best practices, the OSCE contributes to improving transparency, accountability, and effective law enforcement in the evolving digital economy.
“The evolving threats associated with the misuse of virtual assets are of significant importance today, and the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan places strong emphasis on addressing these challenges. Workshops like this are crucial for our practitioners, investigators, and prosecutors, as they equip them with practical tools to effectively tackle these issues in the future. We are grateful to the OSCE for organizing this event and look forward to continuing our cooperation with the OSCE on this topic, including efforts to address the regional dimensions of virtual assets and asset recovery,” said Nurdaulet Suindikov, Chairman of the Asset Recovery Committee of the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan, during his opening remarks. “This marks an important step in our joint efforts to help participating States in Central Asia respond to the rapidly evolving challenges of virtual assets. We will continue to support the Asset Recovery Committee and other institutions in Kazakhstan in their daily work to address the practical challenges associated with virtual asset risks”, highlighted Zurab Sanikidze, Senior Project Officer at the OCEEA.
“Virtual assets and associated crimes are a global and rapidly growing phenomenon that require enhanced international cooperation,” stated Ullrich Kinne, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in the Republic of Kazakhstan, in his opening remarks.
The workshop was organized in close co-operation with the Asset Recovery Committee of the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is part of the OSCE’s extra-budgetary project, “Innovative Policy Solutions to Mitigate Money-Laundering Risks of Virtual Assets”, implemented by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities and funded by Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, the United Kingdom and the United States.
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