While the asset ranking answers the question of which banks are the largest, the efficiency ranking addresses a more practical one: which institutions are best at turning scale into results.
The comparison is based on three key indicators:
▫️Excess of current income over current expenses after corporate income tax (using net profit as a proxy);
▫️Return on Assets (ROA);
▫️Return on Equity (ROE).
During January-May 2026, Kazakhstan’s second-tier banks generated a combined net profit of KZT 1,035.7 billion. The five most profitable banks accounted for 77.4% of the sector’s total earnings:
1️⃣ Halyk Bank — KZT 398.3 billion (-KZT 14.7 billion, or -3.6% year-on-year);
2️⃣ Kaspi Bank — KZT 191.9 billion (-KZT 24.7 billion, or -11.4% year-on-year);
3️⃣ Bank CenterCredit — KZT 87.9 billion (-KZT 31.9 billion, or -26.6% year-on-year);
4️⃣ Otbasy Bank — KZT 68.9 billion (+KZT 13.3 billion, or +23.9% year-on-year);
5️⃣ ForteBank — KZT 54.8 billion (-KZT 17.8 billion, or -24.5% year-on-year).
Citibank Kazakhstan also stood out, posting the second-largest profit growth in absolute terms while maintaining a high level of profitability. Net profit reached KZT 41.7 billion, up KZT 5.3 billion, or 14.4% year-on-year.
ROA is one of the best measures of balance sheet quality because it is less influenced by a bank’s leverage and funding structure.
Top 5 second-tier banks by ROA:
1️⃣ VTB Bank Kazakhstan — 18.7%;
2️⃣ Citibank Kazakhstan — 7.3%;
3️⃣ Kazakhstan-Ziraat International Bank — 7.2%;
4️⃣ Zaman-Bank — 6.6%;
5️⃣ Kaspi Bank — 5.9%.
ROE answers a straightforward question: how much net profit a bank generates for every KZT 1 of shareholders’ equity.
While ROA measures the efficiency of the entire balance sheet, ROE measures how effectively a bank uses its own capital — the foundation of both its financial resilience and business model.
Top 5 second-tier banks by ROE:
1️⃣ Citibank Kazakhstan — 84.9%;
2️⃣ VTB Bank Kazakhstan — 49.6%;
3️⃣ Kaspi Bank — 39.6%;
4️⃣ Halyk Bank — 29.1%;
5️⃣ Bank of China in Almaty — 26.8%.
Bank size shows who shapes the sector. Efficiency shows who converts resources into results. As of May 2026, Kazakhstan’s largest banks continued to generate the bulk of the sector’s profits, while the leaders in ROA and ROE demonstrated the strongest performance per unit of assets and capital.
This article was translated with the assistance of artificial intelligence.
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