Investor

Bulat Utemuratov

Bulat Utemuratov is a leading Kazakh entrepreneur and philanthropist, regularly topping Forbes’ Kazakhstan list. He is the key investor in the projects managed by Verny Capital Investment Group and the founder of the Bulat Utemuratov Foundation, which focuses on health, education, environment and the urban and cultural development in Kazakhstan.

Bulat Utemuratov is the President of the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation, and a member of the Board of Directors and the Vice President of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). In December 2023, he was reappointed for a second term.

Professional career

Bulat Utemuratov graduated from the Almaty Institute for National Economy (today, Narxoz University), where he majored in economics. Mr Utemuratov began his career as Deputy Chairman of the Society District Executive Committee in 1986. Over the next ten years, Mr Utemuratov worked for the State Committee for Foreign Economic Relations, the Kazakh Trading House in Vienna, and then the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and the Ministry of Industry and Trade in Kazakhstan.

In 1995, with a group of partners, Mr Utemuratov founded the Almaty Trade and Finance Bank (ATF Bank), and by 2007 became its only controlling shareholder. During this time, the ATF Bank grew from a small financial institution to one of the leading players in the national banking sector. In 2007, Bulat Utemuratov, along with minority shareholders, sold ATF Bank to UniCredit Group for a record of USD$2.2 billion. According to experts, this transaction was the largest in the CIS banking sector at the time.

Mr Utemuratov served as Ambassador to Switzerland from 1996 to 1999. From February 1999 to May 2013, he then held various government positions within the Security Council and the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The last position that Mr Utemuratov’s held in the civil service was Special Representative of the President for Cooperation with the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. From July 2007 to January 2022, he was a member of the Political Council of the Nur Otan political party.

Charitable activities

Mr. Utemuratov is actively engaged in philanthropic activities incorporating the principles of sustainable development and social responsibility into his investments. The total value of the projects implemented by the Bulat Utemuratov Foundation is more than USD$240 million.

The Bulat Utemuratov Foundation allocated over USD$16 million to its flagship project “Autism. One World for All” which provides early intervention programs for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and support for their families.

The Foundation is one of few organizations in Kazakhstan that implements large-scale social initiatives on a systemic basis, ensuring broad geographical coverage and long-term impact across various sectors. This allows it to respond quickly where relief is needed most, including during critical emergencies. Along with providing emergency response at the local level, in 2023 the Foundation donated USD$5 million to support relief efforts in Turkey following a devastating earthquake. USD$1 million was donated to the families of the miners who died in the Kostenko mine explosion in October 2023.

In 2024, the Foundation allocated approximately USD$26 million to address the aftermath of the large-scale floods in Kazakhstan. These funds were used to provide immediate assistance and to ensure housing for over 400 families in the Aktobe region.

To support regional development, the Foundation has initiated a variety of social infrastructure projects across Kazakhstan worth over USD$133 million, transferring them to the state free of charge. In September 2023, a new school, funded by the Foundation, was opened in the city of Kosshy. It is the first school in the country to comply with the requirements of the “Comfortable School” national standard. In September 2024, two more schools of the same type opened in the Almaty region.

In November 2024, a new passenger terminal at Kyzylorda Airport was opened, covering 7,500 square meters. It increased the airport’s capacity sevenfold, to 2 million passengers per year.

In March 2025, a new public and cultural center opened in Kosshy. With a capacity of over 1,000 people and a total area of 8,500 square meters, the center combines sports, educational, and leisure facilities. Furthermore, in 2026, the Foundation transferred the modern Shabyt Youth Development Center, with a total area of 2,600 square meters, to the city of Zhezkazgan.

Bulat Utemuratov directly supports two not-for-profit educational institutions, namely Narxoz University, one of the leading private universities in Kazakhstan, and the Haileybury International Schools in Kazakhstan, which offer a broad liberal education following the traditions of independent British schooling.

In October 2025, as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen educational infrastructure, improve the quality of education and train world-class professionals in the fields of artificial intelligence, engineering, and robotics, Haileybury Astana opened a state-of-the-art SciTech Hub, a next-generation educational center that integrates science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in an interdisciplinary format. The project cost 3.4 billion tenge.

The proceeds of these institutions are reinvested into staff capacity building, infrastructure development, and improving education quality.

In December 2023, Bulat Utemuratov was named Philanthropist of the Year by the independent members of the Kazakhstan Growth Forum’s Expert Council in recognition of social projects. In June 2024, the Bulat Utemuratov Foundation was awarded the American Chamber of Commerce in Kazakhstan Award in the “Service to Society” category.

Contribution to the future of Kazakhstani athletes

Bulat Utemuratov allocated over USD$200 million to the development of tennis in Kazakhstan, the training of coaches, the construction of tennis infrastructure around the country, and development of long-term training programs for young talented athletes. This approach has proven highly successful. Established national team players such as Elena Rybakina, Alexander Bublik, Yulia Putintseva, Anna Danilina and Zhibek Kulambayeva, as well as junior athletes, are now delivering strong results on the international stage.

Elena Rybakina claimed the Wimbledon title in 2022 and the Australian Open in 2026. To date, she has reached a career-high of world No. 2 in the WTA singles rankings. Alexander Bublik became the first player from independent Kazakhstan to break into the top 10 of the ATP singles rankings. Anna Danilina has strengthened Kazakhstan’s position in world doubles tennis by winning WTA 1000 tournaments and reaching the finals of Grand Slam tournaments.

Kazakhstan is also steadily strengthening its position at junior level. Following the under-14 team’s fourth-place finish at the world championship and the qualification of the junior boys’ and girls’ teams for the final stages of the junior Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup, Kazakhstani tennis players have been consistently achieving strong results in tournaments. Zangar Nurlanuly’s semifinal appearance at the junior Australian Open was a landmark achievement. Amir Omarkhanov, Damir Zhalgasbay, Danial Rakhmatullaev, Sonya Zhienbaeva, and other members of the younger generation are performing successfully at major junior tournaments, gradually making a smooth transition to the professional ranks.

Since 2020, Astana has hosted the annual ATP 250 tournaments. In 2022, the tournament received a one-off upgrade to ATP 500 status. In 2024, ATP approved relocation of the ATP 250 tournament from Astana to Almaty. The ATP 250, the Almaty Open, received top ratings from players, ranking among the top three tournaments of 2024 across more than 30 criteria, including court quality, locker room comfort, spectator support and atmosphere.