Temu purchases in Kazakhstan skyrocket 189-fold in two years

Temu purchases in Kazakhstan skyrocket 189-fold in two years Published September 14, 2026 10:57 Svyatoslav Antonov Senior Journalist of the Business News department s.antonov@kursiv.media china kazakhstan marketplace temu Collage by Kursiv.media, photo editor: Dastan Shanay Chinese marketplaces have become the fastest-growing segment of Kazakhstan’s e-commerce market , with purchase volumes on popular platforms Temu and 1688.com increasing more than tenfold in recent years. At the Central Asia Fintech Summit 2026 in Almaty, Mastercard presented a study of Kazakhstan’s e-commerce market. According to the payments company, e-commerce in Kazakhstan has grown rapidly since the COVID-19 pandemic. Since 2023, the market has expanded from 3 trillion tenge to 5 trillion tenge (about $11 billion). The strongest growth, however, has come from cross-border rather than domestic e-commerce. While local platforms such as Kaspi.kz and Russian marketplaces operating in Kazakhstan, including Ozon and Wildberries , grew 19% in 2025 to 3.77 trillion tenge, international marketplaces grew 50% to 1.15 trillion tenge. Read also: Local shops vs. China’s Temu: Kazakh retail sector fights for survival . Collage by Kursiv.media, photo: globalnomadswear.com, photo editor: Dastan Shanay Analysis showed that Temu’s transaction volume increased 189-fold over the past two years. Purchases by Kazakhstanis on another major Chinese marketplace, 1688.com, increased 13-fold, driven by the platform’s wholesale offerings and factory-direct prices. Ozon and Wildberries also recorded strong growth, although Ozon remains smaller in terms of transaction volume while growing at a faster rate. Cross-border shopping expected to gain share Mastercard also forecast continued growth in Kazakhstan’s e-commerce market. The company estimates that the market will double to 11.1 trillion tenge by 2030. Although the overall growth rate is expected to slow, cross-border e-commerce will account for an increasing share of the market. Mastercard projects that its share will rise from 23% to 32%, driven in part by the expansion of Chinese marketplaces. Kazakh shoppers shift toward lower-cost purchases The Mastercard study also identified a shift in the shopping habits of Kazakhstan’s marketplace users. Marketplaces were previously viewed primarily as a way to make large purchases, particularly electronics bought through installment plans. The number of transactions has since doubled. The increase has been driven by more frequent purchases of lower-priced goods. The average transaction value fell from 25,000 tenge to 14,000 tenge ($31) over the past two years. Kazakhstanis are increasingly purchasing clothing, which accounts for 15% of transactions; household goods, at 25%; and other products, at 33%. Share Link copied