Businessman Marat Abiyev: What Is He Accused of and Who Is He?

RMB: The entrepreneur ended up in the media due to the failed attempt to hold a concert at the Barys Arena sports complex in Astana. Members of Marat Abiyev’s TDFA project were detained in Astana last year. The "Architects of the Future” intended to hold a rally. Abiyev, the organizer, was arrested for 15 days on November 28 last year.

The founder of the TDFA foundation, who called on young people to become "architects of the future", planned to gather followers from all over the country and announced "a free large-scale concert for all participants of the system" in November 2022. The akimat banned the event at the last moment. About 300 people took to the street. An hour and a half later, there were calls to head towards Akorda. People were later detained.

Marat Abiyev was arrested for another two months on December 14 2022. The businessman was transferred to the capital's pre-trial detention center. According to an answer from Astana Police Department to Orda’s official request, Abiyev is charged with Article 274 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Dissemination of deliberately false information").

Agroholding or "State Within a State”

Marat Abiyev made himself known in 2020 with his statement that he brought seeds of agricultural crops from Canada. He claimed to have had a brilliant agricultural project that will “save the country from crisis and the world from hunger”.

An agricultural holding was formed under the brand "Architects of the Future" with the Genesis internal social system from The Development Fund of Agriculture (TDFA).

In three videos, TDFA representatives tell how you can get $7 billion from an anonymous European investor, 5 million hectares from the government of Kazakhstan, divide them between agricultural enterprises of 1,200 "effective managers" and produce a “super grain”.

All this would supposedly function under conditions of exemption from taxes and state control. The food was to be exported, while the surplus - delivered to African countries as humanitarian aid.

Within the Genesis ecosystem, the institute of biys with a cunning system of their powers was supposed to be introduced, specially trained people were to fight corruption, preferential car loan schemes for employees were to be developed, and their own banks were supposed to appear. Abiyev also planned to create a closed economic system in dollars and euros.

The authors of the project wanted to create their own "state within the state" at the expense of the state. At the same time they wanted to demand that the government not interfere. 

Flatlined Canadian Seeds

The "architects" emphasized that Canadian seeds on the virgin lands of the republic would yield a harvest of 35 quintals per hectare (now the average yield level is 12 kg/ha). But this did not happen.

"Genesis representatives invited a number of established, experienced farmers with a name to cooperate, who were offered to test the imported Canadian seeds. In the North Kazakhstan region, fields sown with imported Canadian seeds showed a result of 15 c/ha, while seeds from Germany - 24 c/ ha, and the zoned Russian variety "Omsk–36" - 23.5 c/ha,"

said former Minister of Agriculture Saparkhan Omarov in an interview for informburo.

The chief agronomist of “Rodina”, Kanat Adilbekov, also talked about how the results of the experimental "Canadian" field turned out to be at the level of the fields of the agricultural firm "Rodina", which sows seeds of Kazakh and Russian breeding.

After the unsuccessful experiment, the "Architects of the Future" quarreled with farmers and the Ministry of Agriculture. The former were accused of unprofessionalism, and the Ministry of Agriculture was accused of “betrayal”.

Illegally Imported Seeds

Lorne Hadley, director of the Canadian Plant Development Agency, said back in 2020 that anonymous buyers from Kazakhstan were illegally trying to export seeds of wheat, barley, legumes and soybeans.

"At first, Kazakhstanis tried to purchase seeds publicly, but after a refusal from Canadian producers, they gained access to seeds by deceiving Canadian transport companies and food brokers regarding the place of delivery of the order.

Kazakhstan is not a member of the International Union for the Protection of New Plant Varieties. If exports are carried out within the union, then fees are provided to breeders who have spent millions of dollars and more than 15 years breeding varieties of Canadian wheat. Illegal purchase is simply unfair to farmers,"

Lorne Hadley told Canadian media.

Hadley described Kazakhstani buyers as "very aggressive" and advised farmers to be careful.

Despite the statements from the Canadians, Abiyev has claimed that he received the seed material legally through the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) The World Trade Organization. At the same time, he did not disclose the number of seeds brought.

Aidarbek Khojanazarov, the owner of the agro-industrial holding "Olzha Agro", offered the "Architect of the future" 5 thousand hectares of land for planting Canadian seeds. He also promised to provide equipment, but for some reason Abiyev refused.

Marat Abiyev's Biography

Abiyev's father Zhaksylyk worked as a diesel engineer in the Aktobe oil exploration expedition, head of the workshop in the October Drilling Department and in the Kazakh-Chinese Drilling Company "Great Wall" LLP, chief engineer of the Central Production Service Base. He was also the deputy commander for operational work in the state military enterprise "Ak Beren".

Abiev's mother Tamara is a university teacher of architecture and building structures, a chess champion of the Kazakh SSR.

In his interview with Forbes, the future "architect" stated that he patented mobile cartridge refilling in 2007. There is no such patent in the "archive of the state Register of rights to objects".

In the same article, Abiyev reportedly created Euromobile Kazakhstan LLP for satellite monitoring of transport in 2009. This information does not correspond to the data of the Egov portal. Renat Kenzhegaliev registered EuroMobile Kazakhstan LLP in 2013.

In 2011, Abiyev founded KSP Steel Trading House LLP (Kazakhstan Seamless Pipe Plant) with the aim of selling seamless pipes produced by KSP Steel for subsoil users and oil and gas industry enterprises.

A year later, a foreign firm NEWBRIDGE ALLIANCE LTD appeared on the list of founders of the KSP Steel Trading House. The firm was initially registered in the Virgin Islands and then in Singapore.

The ex-head of the waste management Department of the Ministry of Energy, Jean Nurbekov, played a huge role in the sale of pipes (a year ago he was involved in a scandal about embezzlement and was in the dock with vice-ministers of energy). It was with Nurbekov's support that Abiyev proved the affiliation of JSC "SNPS Aktobemunaygas" and the Chinese pipe manufacturer, after which Aktobemunaygas began to buy pipes from KSP Steel.

The founders of KSP Steel LLP are Eduard Kramer and Asia Pacific Investments Limited, affiliated with oligarch Rashit Sarsenov. The latter is considered to be close to the Nazarbayev family.

In 2014, Abiyev worked as the director of the Department of Public Procurement and Local Content of the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of the Republic of Kazakhstan "Atameken". He later headed the Centre for Monitoring and Market Expertise LLP. The centre received the functions of providing services to the Ministry of Energy for analyzing the dynamics of local content in subsurface use contracts in February 2015.

“Fight Against Corruption”

One of the main goals of the Genesis network is to eradicate corruption. Abiyev has claimed that he has already imprisoned 15 corrupt officials and will send another 1,000 to jail. 

The ideas that he broadcasts in the light of his plans to fight corruption fall under several articles of the Criminal Code at once: kidnapping, their illegal detention, illegal export outside Kazakhstan and subsequent lynching.

"I call on the people to unite. I need 10 thousand fighters, strong-minded guys who will fight corruption together with me. If some corrupt scum offends at least one of our people, we will take this person abroad to a safe territory, and I will personally deal with this scum,"

Abiyev said in an interview with blogger Alibekov.

The video was deleted by court order, but the Internet remembers everything.

In 2016, Marat Abiyev was listed as the director of Kazakhstan Oil Refinery LLP, which, in turn, was a partner of the Caspian Oil Company enterprise (the ultimate owner is Timur Kulibayev).

Abiyev and representatives of Kulibayeva's company volunteered to help an investigation of a bribery case. The chief specialist of the oil research department, Arman Agubayev, was the target. He did not give a positive opinion on the crude oil produced by Kulibayev's company. Agubayev requested 150 thousand dollars in return for the required examination decision. Abiyev took the initiative and appealed to the Anti-Corruption Service. They, in turn, provided fake money to the "architect" in order to catch the customs officer in the process of receiving a bribe.

In Whose Interests is Marat Abiyev Acting?

Abiyev positions himself as a "man without a roof.” His biography, however, shows his affiliation with oligarchs and officials who helped him build a career (Timur Kulibayev, Jean Nurbekov, Rashit Sarsenov).

The telegram channel "Nursultan Nightingale" had also published a new version of his joint affairs with the oligarchs.

"He has enjoyed the support of Kairat Satybaldy and Anipa Nazarbayeva for a long time. Abiyev was engaged in smuggling on the Kazakh-Chinese border, where, in fact, he came to the attention of members of the family of Nursultan Nazarbayev, received large sums of money from them and implemented for them the dirtiest schemes related to contraband goods. If these statements are true, then it is likely that the purpose of the concert planned in Nur-Sultan by Abiyev was a provocation in the interests of Satybaldy and Kairat Boranbayev,"

Original Authors: Ainura Akhanova, Damira Augambayeva

DISCLAIMER: This is a combination of two translated articles. The main part of the article is from an investigation done in 15, May, 2022. The texts have been, modified, the content is the same. For accuracy, please refer to the original articles in Russian.