The nine-story Kaisar Plaza business center in Almaty، confiscated from Kairat Satybaldyuly، has once again failed to sell at auction، despite a price reduction of nearly 14 billion tenge from its initial valuation. No bidders registered for the auction، according to infohub.kz.
The property has been on the market for four months. In April، the starting price was 61.5 billion tenge؛ in June، it was lowered to 54 billion، but the lot remained unsold. After another discount of 7 billion tenge، there was no buyer interest.
According to an appraisal report، the market value of the building itself is 44.7 billion tenge، and the lease rights for the land under it are 2.8 billion tenge. Experts recommended these amounts for the transaction، but the owner — the Company for Management of Returned Assets (CMRA) — listed the lot at a higher price.
The company explained that it determines the price itself based on internal rules. The final amount depends on independent experts' valuation and market conditions. The future of the business center will be decided in accordance with internal rules and current legislation، the CMRA noted.
Kaisar Plaza is a large retail and office center with a total area of 63،920 square meters، built in 2017. It is located at 115 Zheltoksan Street on a 0.7-hectare plot leased from the state until 2031. The building houses 53 tenants and is managed by a temporary trust company.
Discrepancies were found in the documents: the technical passport shows an area 7،400 square meters smaller than the state registry. The difference arose from recalculating the area and including a panoramic floor (nearly 2،300 square meters) that is actually a roof. Additionally، the auction is held excluding VAT، as the current owner is a VAT payer، so the final buyer will have to pay the tax on top of the final price.
The history of this plot is notable: ten years ago، the historic building of the State Planning Committee of the Kazakh SSR، built in 1954، stood there. In 2015، despite activists' protests، it was demolished and the business center was built on the site.
Kairat Satybaldyuly is the nephew of former President Nursultan Nazarbayev. In 2022، he was sentenced to six years in prison for embezzlement at Kazakhtelecom and the Transport Service Center. Later، a new money laundering case was opened، and he fully admitted guilt. To compensate the state for damages، Satybaldyuly began handing over his assets. By 2024–2026، the total value of returned property exceeded 730 billion tenge.
Among the confiscated assets: the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel (6.49 billion tenge)، the Baisat market (15.9 billion)، the Megatau trade house (8.9 billion)، the ArSat (8.9 billion)، Maisat (5.2 billion)، and Optimus business centers in Astana (3.2 billion)، Kaisar Tower (7.9 billion)، and three mansions in Astana worth 5 billion tenge. Additionally، assets were returned from abroad: two villas in the UAE (about 20 billion tenge)، four apartments in France (about 4 billion)، 15 properties in Moscow (5 billion)، and real estate in Turkey (over 4 billion).
In August 2024، a court in Ust-Kamenogorsk considered Satybaldyuly's request for leniency and replaced his remaining prison term with restricted freedom — 3 years، 3 months، and 7 days.