note 020October 25, 2026
A Running List of Claims Still Waiting for Evidence
The standing list I keep, the categories it falls into, and why publishing it is more useful than another prediction.
Dated notes from the AIFC
Short, dated notes on what the licensed infrastructure in Astana actually does. Each one says what was checked and what could not be. Nothing here predicts anything.
earlier notes
note 019Oct 20, 2026
Checking Whether an Advertised Pair Is Actually Tradable
A pair can be listed, visible and effectively untradable. Three checks that take two minutes.
note 018Oct 16, 2026
What a New Authorisation Changes for Ordinary Users
A platform obtaining a licence changes four things for its customers, and most of them are not visible for months.
note 017Oct 13, 2026
Infrastructure That Exists Only in a Memorandum
A note on the difference between a signed document and a working system, and why the first keeps being reported as the second.
note 016Oct 8, 2026
Support Response Times, Measured Over Two Weeks
A method for measuring something people complain about constantly and nobody records, plus what my own records show.
note 015Oct 4, 2026
The Quiet Delisting Nobody Announced
Assets are added with a post and removed with a footnote. A note on noticing, and on what a holder should do.
note 014Oct 2, 2026
Comparing Published Fees With Fees Actually Charged
A method for checking that a schedule is applied, which takes one transaction and a careful look at the statement.
note 013Sep 27, 2026
Market Making on Regulated Venues: What the Books Show
Order book depth is public and tells you more about a venue than its marketing does. What to look at and what it means.
note 012Sep 23, 2026
Conference Announcements Versus Things That Shipped
A note on the annual cycle of announcements, and a simple record-keeping habit that makes it legible.
note 011Sep 19, 2026
Registry Entries Worth Checking Before You Sign Anything
Four registers, what each one tells you, and the ten minutes that separate a checked counterparty from an assumed one.
note 010Sep 15, 2026
Which Services Are Open to Non-Residents
Residency determines what a platform may offer you. A note on finding the answer before onboarding rather than during.
note 009Sep 11, 2026
A Short Note on Verification Times at Two Platforms
What can and cannot be concluded from a handful of onboarding attempts, and why I publish the method rather than a ranking.
note 008Sep 7, 2026
Digital Tenge Pilots: What Was Visible This Quarter
A note on what can be observed from outside a central bank pilot, and what cannot.
note 007Sep 4, 2026
Observing a Withdrawal End to End on a Licensed Venue
What each stage of a withdrawal actually consists of, and which stage is responsible when the whole thing takes two days.
note 006Aug 30, 2026
Bank Partnerships Named in Filings, and Their Current State
Banking relationships are the binding constraint on any platform here. They are announced loudly and discontinued quietly.
note 005Aug 26, 2026
Fees Charged by AIFC Platforms, as Published
A note on reading published schedules, what they usually omit, and the one number that is almost never in them.
note 004Aug 22, 2026
The Gap Between a Press Release and a Working Service
Six stages separate an announcement from something you can use. Most coverage reports stage one as if it were stage six.
note 003Aug 17, 2026
Testing Whether a Licensed Platform Actually Accepts Deposits
A method for checking that a service exists, costing one minimum deposit and about twenty minutes.
note 002Aug 14, 2026
Note on a Pilot That Was Announced and Not Yet Observed
The standing problem with covering this market: announcements are public, operations are not, and nobody follows up.
note 001Aug 10, 2026
Which AIFC Licences Are Live, and What They Permit
A note on reading the register rather than the press release, and on the difference between a permission and a service.