Daria Kashurina
PayRow, the UAE-based payment platform, and 8B, the Central Asian payments infrastructure company that recently entered Kazakhstan by connecting the region’s national rails to the world, today announced a strategic partnership to power local payment acceptance for GITEX AI Central Asia & Caucasus Kazakhstan, taking place in Almaty on 4–5 May 2026.
For two days in May, Almaty becomes the meeting point for over 600 global exhibitors, 60+ countries and more than 10,000 professionals shaping the future of AI, fintech, cybersecurity, sovereign cloud and digital government. It is also the headline event of Kazakhstan’s officially declared Year of Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence.
Here lies a paradox the industry rarely talks about: at most global tech summits, the easiest thing to do on stage is to talk about frictionless cross-border commerce – and the hardest thing to do at the registration desk is actually pay for a ticket from a local Kazakh, Uzbek or Kyrgyz bank account. PayRow and 8B have decided that, this time, the conference floor and the checkout page should tell the same story.
From keynote slogans to a working checkout
Through this partnership, every payment touchpoint connected to GITEX – ticketing, exhibitor packages, sponsorship invoices, on-site services and partner bookings — can be settled using the methods the region’s visitors actually carry: Kazakhstan-issued cards from leading local banks, alongside the Visa and Mastercard products international guests expect. By the 2027 edition, PayRow and 8B aim to bring Kazakhstan’s and Uzbekistan’s national QR systems, as well as Kyrgyzstan’s ELQR, into the same single checkout.
In Kazakhstan, payments are supported through Zesta LLP, a licensed local payment organisation (License No. 02-23-179), ensuring full regulatory compliance. 8B brings the Central Asian rails – its growing network of local card schemes and instant-payment connections, accessible through a single API. PayRow brings the UAE-anchored merchant infrastructure, settlement and global card acquiring that turn those rails into a smooth, unified checkout.
Spokesperson statements
Ghanim Eid Bin Wogayeh, Acting CEO & Board Member, PayRow, stated: “GITEX in Almaty is the ideal platform to showcase a modern, regionally focused payment system. Often, international events use payment setups not suited for local visitors. The UAE has developed a leading cashless ecosystem, and Kazakhstan is rapidly advancing its own. PayRow aims to connect these ecosystems at the merchant level.”
Bogdan Zadorozhny, Co-Founder and Chief Innovation Officer, 8B, added: “GITEX visitors from across Central Asia can pay through the local cards and wallets they already use, while merchants receive settlement through familiar local infrastructure. The bigger opportunity ahead is to make this kind of regional acceptance seamless across national QR ecosystems.”
GITEX AI Central Asia & Caucasus is hosted by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development, in partnership with Astana Hub and the Akimat of Almaty. Discussions are underway to extend the acceptance stack to other events and services through 2026.
