Damu Fund shifts to market-driven tools after record 2025 growth

A meeting of the board of directors of the Damu Entrepreneurship Development Fund—a subsidiary of the Baiterek holding—was held under the chairmanship of Serik Zhumangarin, Kazakhstan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Economy.

During the session, the fund reviewed a preliminary report on its performance in 2025, as noted by Damu representatives. Farhat Sarsekiev, Chairman of the Fund's Board, delivered the presentation.

"In 2025, Damu's efforts focused on a phased transition from non-market support mechanisms to more sustainable, market-based tools, shifting the emphasis from direct subsidies toward guarantee schemes and concessional lending. Priority was given to strategic economic sectors: manufacturing, healthcare, education, transport and logistics, as well as tourism," Sarsekiev reported.

According to Damu's preliminary data, the fund's return on assets (ROA) reached 7.6% (as of the end of November 2025), significantly exceeding the annual target of 2.6%.

To date, the fund has supported around 11,000 projects totaling 1.9 trillion tenge across all its instruments. By year-end, it plans to expand assistance to 13,000 projects worth 2.3 trillion tenge.

This year, Damu established guarantee funds to support small, medium, and large businesses. Under Guarantee Fund 1 (GF-1), over 2,500 projects have been backed to the tune of approximately 440 billion tenge, including 245 billion tenge in guarantees. The average loan size stood at 174 million tenge, with an average guarantee of 96 million tenge. Micro and small businesses accounted for 96.3% of supported projects, medium-sized enterprises for 3.3%, and large businesses for 0.4%.

More than 70% of approved projects directed funds toward investment purposes, including launching new production facilities, purchasing equipment, and construction. The manufacturing sector led in approvals, representing about 39% of total loans issued. High demand was also recorded in transport, logistics, and education. The program covers all regions of the country, with Astana and Almaty, as well as the Aktobe and Mangystau regions, leading in the number of supported projects. Agreements under GF-1 have been signed with 11 second-tier banks, the Industrial Development Fund JSC, and Aktobe Regional Financial Corporation JSC.