On October 30, Astana hosted the opening ceremony of the final stage of the Finance Chess Cup 2026, an industry-wide chess tournament held in celebration of National Currency Day. The final brings together 50 teams comprising 150 representatives of government agencies, financial institutions and quasi-public sector organisations.
The tournament is being held for the second consecutive year. It is organised by the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Kazakhstan Chess Federation.
This year, teams from the Supreme Audit Chamber, the National Bank, the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market, and the Ministry of National Economy joined the competition for the first time.
The participants were welcomed at the opening ceremony by Ernar Yerzhanov, Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Finance, and Marat Yessenov, Vice President of the Kazakhstan Chess Federation.
Ernar Yerzhanov congratulated the participants on reaching the final and expressed his gratitude to the Federation, referees and organisers. He noted that the tournament brings together colleagues from different regions and helps strengthen friendly ties. He also expressed hope that participation in the competition would become a tradition for new teams as well.
The tournament also features teams from the committees and territorial departments of the Ministry of Finance, financial institutions and quasi-public sector companies.
The competition is held in a team format, with each team consisting of two men and one woman. The programme includes nine rounds played under the Swiss system.
The tournament will run for two days, with the winners and runners-up to be determined on October 31.
