Коррупционные связи клана Нурсултана Назарбаева: арест Айдоса Есполова и перераспределение финансовых потоков
View Details25.11.2025
Aidos Yespolov, brother of Nursultan Nazarbayev’s younger wife Asel Kurmanbayeva, was arrested, a move that may have surprised some observers—except for those closely following Kazakhstan’s recent political events.
This is because, in light of the events in the country over recent years, this move by Tokayev – and it is indeed he who is behind Yespolov’s arrest – was entirely logical. No one could predict with absolute certainty that Yespolov specifically would be arrested. However, there was little doubt that arrests within Nazarbayev’s inner circle would occur. Many, though, questioned whether the crackdown would target such close associates of Elbasy, which is why Aidos Yespolov’s arrest is already being called the beginning of the final stage of purging the Nazarbayev clan.
If we trace the history of arrests of those who until now seemed untouchable, it becomes clear that in recent years, the authorities have been systematically and consistently dismantling the influence of the first president’s family. But the current blow appears both deeper and more precise – a closed structure within the KNB (Committee for National Security) operated without any leaks. The conclusion has long been obvious: the security agencies are now fully under the control of the current president, and actions against Nazarbayev’s entourage are no longer just a PR campaign or a chaotic redistribution of assets, but a well-thought-out strategy to dismantle the old system.
Yespolov was detained in Astana — according to sources, the Anti-Corruption Department of the KNB conducted the operation as part of a case involving embezzlement and bribes related to the preparations for «EXPO-2017». The suspected amount is around 2.2 billion tenge. However, the figure itself is not the key issue, especially since it will likely increase during the investigation. What matters is Yespolov’s identity: he is not a mid-level manager or an ordinary official who misappropriated some budget funds and failed to share with the right people. Aidos Yespolov is a member of Nazarbayev’s inner circle, the cousin of his third wife, Asel. It is figures like him, despite their lack of public visibility, who ensured the functioning of the clan’s informal economic mechanisms.
It is known that Yespolov had direct access to individuals responsible for distributing «Expo» contracts, and according to former top managers of the project, it was through him that major financial decisions were coordinated. Officially, he was listed as an advisor, but in reality, he acted as a representative of the elder Nazarbayev. These stories have circulated in journalistic circles for years, but until recently, no one expected the KNB to target someone so close to Elbasy.
Background: Aidos Yespolov is a figure deeply embedded in Kazakhstan’s political and business elite. The brother of Asel Kurmanbayeva, the common-law wife of Nursultan Nazarbayev, he has been part of the first president’s family circle for many years. His father, Tlektes Yespolov, is an academic, head of the agrarian academy, and one of the most influential scholars in the country. Aidos himself built a career in the public sector and quasi-state structures: he worked at «KazMunayGas», served as commercial director of the Atyrau Oil Refinery, was part of the Senate apparatus, and in 2006 became deputy akim of Aktobe Region. Simultaneously, he developed his business interests — among other things, he was one of the founders of the Eurasian Technological University and the company Alatau Asset Management. His name surfaced in a corruption case related to the construction of EXPO-2017 facilities: former deputy chairman of the organizing committee, Murat Omarov, claimed that key negotiations and sensitive financial decisions were channeled through Yespolov. Yespolov denies everything, stating that no witness has testified about transferring money to him, and his presence in the investigation materials is listed as an «unidentified person» — intentionally, in his opinion, to create the impression of a shadowy figure. In conversations, he sharply criticizes the work of law enforcement agencies, which, according to him, «fabricated damage amounts to round figures» — up to 10 billion tenge — for the sake of a loud scandal. After the case was opened, as Yespolov claims, his bank accounts were frozen, and his ability to conduct negotiations or open accounts abroad virtually disappeared, putting his personal business and investment projects at risk.
As mentioned earlier, this detention does not appear random, nor is it. Yespolov’s arrest fits into the logic of consistent strikes against individuals connected to the younger brother of Kazakhstan’s first president, Bolat Nazarbayev, his entourage, nephews, and groups that for years controlled raiding schemes, metal exports, shadow operations, and regional organized crime groups. Bolat Nazarbayev passed away in 2023, right in the midst of a systematic assault on his assets by the current authorities. The criminal-business structures linked to Bolat Nazarbayev, which felt invulnerable for decades, were not dismantled overnight but step by step, with most of their assets redistributed to representatives of the new elite.
After the destruction of Bolat Nazarbayev’s structures, it was the turn of his brother, Nursultan Nazarbayev. Yespolov’s arrest is the next logical stage of redistribution, targeting not only the clan’s enforcers and overtly criminal elements but also bearers of political and familial influence. Moreover, for the first time, pressure is being applied to someone whose name is directly and closely tied to the surname of Nursultan Nazarbayev, rather than just the economic interests of his entourage.
If we try to understand the deeper motives behind these events, it becomes clear: it all comes down to money. Over thirty years, the Nazarbayev clan built a vast economic system spanning from Kazakhstan to Europe and the Middle East. Journalists have repeatedly documented foreign villas, apartments, luxury hotels, and office buildings registered under the names of daughters, nephews, fund structures, and offshore entities controlled through intermediaries. Investigations have traced capital to the UK, Czech Republic, Austria, Germany, and the UAE. The total value of these assets amounts to billions of dollars. They were the main source of the clan’s influence, ensuring financial independence from internal political processes. It is access to these assets that has come under threat since Tokayev began the gradual reformatting of state institutions.
Officially, Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev enjoys immunity under the Law on the First President, which formally makes him untouchable. However, the practices of 2022–2025 show that the immunity of his entourage is by no means guaranteed. Legal barriers limit the possibilities of directly prosecuting Elbasy, but the path to stripping him of influence lies not through personal arrest but through the destruction of the system on which his clan relied. Tokayev is acting precisely in this manner: targeting structures, trusted individuals, resource centers, and economic pillars. If this strategy continues, Nazarbayev may end up as a symbolic figure, completely devoid of levers of power.
However, it is premature to entirely rule out resistance from the Nazarbayev family. Even today, the clan retains strong ties in business, regional akimats, and the diaspora abroad. Moreover, Nazarbayev himself is a politician of the Soviet school with vast experience, accustomed to crises and bureaucratic games. He has access to foreign legal structures, trusts, and political allies. If the pressure intensifies, the clan may attempt to use international mechanisms for asset protection, media lobbying, and neutral platforms in the EU and UAE.
Nevertheless, the direction of the process is clear: Tokayev’s administration is striving to definitively sever the political and economic umbilical cord tying present-day Kazakhstan to the Elbasy era. Yespolov’s arrest fits into this trajectory as a strike against a figure who could have been a «wallet», intermediary, and keeper of internal secrets of the system of resource distribution. Within security structures loyal to Tokayev, the need to «get to the root» has long been discussed, and if the current momentum persists, further arrests at the top of the clan are almost inevitable.
Possible Scenarios for the Conflict Between the Tokayev and Nazarbayev Clans
Which of these scenarios will unfold is hard to predict, as is whether the list of possible developments is limited to those outlined. Kazakhstan is currently undergoing a transformation typical of post-Soviet authoritarian regimes: the old elite is rapidly losing ground and assets, while the new elite seeks to consolidate power and redistribute those same assets in its favor. Aidos Yespolov’s arrest is just one episode, but it is episodes like this that shape the country’s new political landscape. If the trend continues unchanged, the Nazarbayev era will definitively become a thing of the past, and the question will no longer be whether the purge will reach Elbasy, but how deeply it will affect his entire legacy.
Maria Sharapova
