Critics point to the BTA Bank saga, where Kamalov’s policies on bad debt recovery allowed international creditors to seize Kazakh assets. Furthermore, his close ties to the financial group Halyk Bank have led to accusations of regulatory capture. Detractors call him the "Prince of Volatility"—arguing that his passion for floating currencies and market shocks has made the Kazakhstani middle class permanently distrustful of their national currency, shifting their savings entirely to dollars and real estate. As of 2026, Ablet Kamalov serves as a private consultant and a visiting professor at Nazarbayev University. He has been conspicuously absent from the new government of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, leading many to speculate that his "shock therapy" era is over.
In the complex tapestry of post-Soviet economic reform, few names resonate with as much controversial weight and strategic foresight in Kazakhstan as Ablet Kamalov . While not a household name like the country’s first president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kamalov is widely regarded by insiders as the "grey cardinal" of Kazakh economics—a technocrat whose fingerprints are on nearly every major financial pivot the nation has taken in the last decade. ablet kamalov
In an infamous 2015 interview, Kamalov said: "The market must clear itself. We cannot fight the ocean with a bucket." Critics point to the BTA Bank saga, where