The AFI family officially grew by two today as the National Bank of Kazakhstan and the Social Security Regulatory Authority of Tanzania became the latest regulatory institutions to join the network.

The National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan will be the first institution from that country to join AFI. As the central bank of Kazakhstan it represents the upper tier of the banking system. The bank oversees, within the limits of its authority, the interests and relationship of the Republic of Kazakhstan with national banks, banks of other countries, international banks and other financial credit organizations.

The national bank joins the AFI network at a time when financial inclusion activities within the Europe and Central Asia (ECA) region are becoming increasingly prominent. This month AFI will be co-hosting two financial inclusion workshops focused on the ECA. The first, “Seminar on Cybersecurity and Risk Management for Policymakers in Europe and Central Asia”, will be held in Berlin on 15 October. The second, “Eastern Europe and Central Asia Regional Forum on Financial Inclusion”, will take place in Skopje, Macedonia 26-28 October.

With the National Bank of the Republic of Kazakhstan now an official member, the network’s expertise in the ECA will expand and deepen, providing valuable insights and new knowledge exchange opportunities within the region and across the AFI membership.

The Social Security Regulatory Authority (SSRA) of Tanzania will become its country’s second institution in the AFI network, joining long-standing member Bank of Tanzania (BOT). The addition of the SSRA adds further strength to AFI’s representation in East Africa, which remains one of the fastest growing and most innovative regions for financial inclusion. The SSRA is charged with the protection of interest of members of social security schemes and SSRA registers. It also supervises pensions, supplementary and health insurance schemes, as well as fund managers, custodians and administrators.

For a full list of AFI’s members visit the network members page at: http://www.afi-global.org/afi-network/members.